Fighting in a world of Harmony

Chapters

Prologue
The "Gypsy"
The Bakery
Manehattan
The Stable?
Camp
Life After Death
An Injury Is No Excuse
Death Becomes Life, and Life is Nothing
Does A Snake Spit Acid?

Prologue

"At one point, there was peace in Equestria. The Elements of Harmony existed to fight the villains that arose, and the princesses kept peace within the elements. The elements took to ponies in the form of a crown and five necklaces to wear and battle evil. For these six friends, it was easy to keep harmony spread across the land. They had even turned the master of chaos, Discord, into an ally to aide them in their adventures. He was their eyes, and he informed them of the bad in Equestria when Princess Celestia and Princess Luna could not. With the master of chaos gone, everything seemed better in the land. The other villains were destroyed. Some were even locked away in a place far, far away.

It was not all cheery for the land, though. Each night, the loss of the disharmony grew tensions. It started in Appaloosa, then spread further, to Manehattan. Fights began to break out among the pedestrians of the towns, big and small alike. News of these conflicts were brought to Princess Celestia, who tried to take action. She made laws against anger, which made the citizens even angrier than before. People tried to rise and revolt against both the sisters that resided in the castle of the greatest city, Canterlot.

Princess Celestia did not want her sister, Princess Luna, to have to experience this fight. She did not want her sister to suffer the cruel fates that the world had brought upon Equestria. Alas, she put a spell onto her sister, locking her away in another far away place. Celestia had not wanted Luna to experience the horror that she knew that she herself would have to go through. She initially put her sister under a sleep spell. When she realized this would be temporary, she strengthened it. She then followed by taking her sister to the secret chamber that Sombra had set up in the Crystal Empire castle, disguising it as the Canterlot Castle itself for if she woke up, and locking her away. She could only hope that Luna would be safe and unharmed. The fighting then commenced. Ponies from everywhere brought anything they could use to fight against her. They even fought with their bare hooves.

Harmony was the creation of magic, so the ponies had no way of fighting but through blunt objects. They took over the castle, sending Princess Celestia to her demise. It was not a surprise when the townspeople began to break out in war yet again. Soon enough, this fighting made its way to Ponyville, the town of the Elements of Harmony. They had early heard news of the fighting, but took it as normal, everyday arguments. When it came to town, the mass was so large they confined themselves to the one safe place, the library.

There they lay, trying to use the elements to battle against everything that had been raging outside. In there, they split themselves into pieces, which they hid in the books that resided within the library. There the six ponies lay, waiting for something to kill them. They soon after died of blood loss. When discovered, it looked as if the chaos had gotten to them.

The bodies were discovered torn apart, teeth marks embedded within their skin. It seemed as if they were trying to devour each other in an attempt to survive. The only hopes were the ponies that had locked themselves from the violence, and the souls of the elements which were all locked into one book in the library, simply marked: The Journal."

That was all that was in the book. The last ten pages seemed to have been torn out. I had only just arrived at this library, picking out the only book that was still legible. Ponyville was deserted, or so I seemed to my eyes. The desolate landscape was burned beyond recognition, the only thing identifying this town was the sign that lay outside of it. Outside, bodies had been scattered everywhere. They had all died of different reasons. Some had disease, spread from the last remaining magic left in ponies. Some were beaten to death. The rest of the ponies had apparently travelled to other destinations. Here, all they wanted were the six friends.

I don't know how I could have survived or even kept my sanity, for that matter. It didn't make any sense that while this book said the only ponies safe were those in the book and those that hid themselves, I was still safe. I didn't remember anything up to the point of walking into the town. In fact, I could really only remember one detail: my name. I knew my name was Sodapop, but there was nothing else that floated through my memories.

When I found this book, I truly learned the extent of what really happened. It was a mystery to me as to how the words were on this page. If the world was such a savage these days, the words couldn't have possibly gotten here. Either way, it made no sense to stop here. I was hungry, and I needed to find any form of food. My only hope was that there were some animals around here, ones that could easily be killed.

I knew the forest that I emerged from was still alive, as were the trees. I could find firewood there, and cook whatever I caught out there. I walked up the broken stairs of the tree house. Somebody had burned these after the magic dissipated, but somehow most of the building stood as it was. There was nothing more damaged here than a burnt door and some burnt stairs. The stairs seemed ready to collapse, but I tested them out first. Each step I touched made a creak or a moan. It was hard to tell which steps would disintegrate and which steps would actually hold my weight under it. I was fairly small for a pony of my age, at only two feet eight inches tall. Most ponies had the advantage of being normal, which was three feet five inches tall.

Anyways, as I cautiously walked up the stairs, I saw a hammer lying on the top one. The step looked about ready to crumble, but this was a weapon. It had to be my weapon, of course, or I would get no food tonight. The sun was already going down outside, and I couldn't be outside at night. If any of these savages came back through this territory, I couldn't be found. I knew how hard it would be to survive out there. This was war out there.

I could tell by my wings that I was a Pegasus, but my wings weren't any good. Trying to fly was a bust for me, and as I saw no other Pegasus flying through the air, I assumed the same for them. I reached out with my teeth, knowing that this was the only thing other than that journal that I would find in this library. As straining as it was, I caught the edge of the handle and, in the process of bringing it towards me, dropped it to the floor.

The loud noise was shattering glass. It was echoing across the entire library (what was left inside) and I jumped about four feet into the air, landing onto the top platform, where messy beds lay parallel to one another. After the hammer fell silent on the ground, I was too scared to go back down there for a little while. I knew this night that I would be too frightened to go out hunting, and these beds looked quite comfortable. It seemed that there was something else of use in this library after all! I tried making them as best as I good, not ever having the privilege of sleeping in a bed.

I couldn't really remember ever sleeping at all, but right now, I felt like I hadn't slept in at least one hundred years. It was agonizing and, in my tired state, I didn't think of the worst. The thoughts never crossed my mind that I could've been attacked in my sleep, or even that the building could collapse on top of me. Right now, my only thought was the beds. I chose the smaller one, not wanting to feel selfish, and settled down.

What more was there to think about? As my eyes took me to Dream Land, only one other thought crossed my mind.

"This is the Equestrian War. Only the toughest will survive. Just after they sleep...."

The "Gypsy"

BOOM!

The loud sound helped me to spring out of bed, yelling in very expletive manner. I wasn't proud of my language, but somewhere in my life I assumed I had inherited it. It was a part of me. I sat there, lying under my covers, wondering who was going to kill me now. I didn't want to die, so I held the hammer in front of me, clenching it tightly in my teeth. Thoughts ran through my mind of the many ways to die, but all I could hear under the green cover of the blanket was the sound of a pitter patter on the roof of the library. I opened up a hole in the blanket to look out at the window beside me.

The world outside was filled with the bright rays of the sun. I had obviously slept through the night (Surprisingly...). Outside, small clouds began to cover the open patches of the sky, raining down onto the town. It was both a miracle and a curse. A miracle it was because rain was cool and comforting. Rain brought forth a hope in people, or at least in me.

Though, rain was also a curse. Rain could bring out the worst in people. Taking it as a threat, as I did, people can become harmful. I was hoping that the Goddesses were going to smile upon me today and let me live again. There was obviously no threat here but my own mind. I stepped down onto the floorboards as quickly and quietly as I could.

CREEAAAAKKK!

So much for quiet.

Holding the hammer firmly in my nuzzle, I scurried down the stairs. What I hadn't noticed before (If it was even there) was a saddlebag on a skeleton. I started to reach for it when my mind got to me. There was a skeleton in here! Six of them!!

At first I jumped back in fright, all my senses getting knocked from me as my eyes went blank. When my sight returned, I had the assumption that these were the six friends who had fallen victim to the chaos that ensued. Though, they didn't look to be in positions to eat each other. They looked like they were....hugging. Like they're last few minutes together were their finest.

I (hesitantly) grabbed the saddlebags from the pony with the cowboy hat on. As I leaned forward, a smell hit me. It was the smell of decay. A rotten apple stench that I had never noticed when I came in here now lingered with me as I went back up to make sure I hadn't forgotten anything. I was about ready to hurl, but I knew that I couldn't. All that would come out of my mouth was bile, and I didn't want to taste that, or have a hole burned in my tongue for that matter.

After thoroughly searching the room for anything of importance, I began to walk down the stairs again. Every noise these stairs made brought me closer to the knife just waiting to cut me into the mixture. Stairs started to collapse behind me, with every step I took. Seemingly, they were harmless when I was stepping on them.

CRASH!

The stairs had obviously met their limit. As I plunged through the floorboards, I heard something in the distance. It sounded like...laughing. The apple smell returned to me as I finally let loose, spewing what was left of my stomach onto myself as I lay there, contemplating how I was going to get out.

~~~

Walking into the sunlight, I smiled at my expertly devised plan.

I rested there, unable to move and the hammer being wedged beneath my hind hooves. Escape was impossible in this situation, and here, I realized, was going to be where they found my body. Flies would already have me decomposed by that time, a smell like that of the six ponies right outside this ditch. I felt angry. Angry that the world would do this to me. Angry that I couldn't remember anything. It just wasn't fair that I, being the only sane pony around here, was the one who was met with all the bad luck.

I wanted to hurt somepony. It felt like my only escape. I began to cry. I cried out of anger, but also out of sadness. I would never learn of my past. All thoughts of the future I expected to live was immediately diminished. I hadn't even made a single friend, and already I was going to die.

I felt the hammer edging at my hooves, and I yelped, the back biting me like a dog. I felt the saddlebags lurch forward when I bucked the hammer, so I did it again. This time, I moved forward with the saddlebags and, soon enough, I was able to crawl out of the hole. Grabbing my stuff, I left this hellhole of a building, leaving it behind me as my mind raced with thoughts of the six friends who had survived a long time with friendship. It had kept them alive long enough to record their memories in this journal, and I was going to find a way to mourn them, one way or another.

It was perfect. Even if it had been by accident, I had discovered a way of escape. I didn't bother thanking the "Goddesses." I couldn't even prove that they were real. All they had to even try to make me believe was this so-called castle in Canterlot.

I had never actually been to Canterlot myself. I assumed it was just as any other normal town would be, except carved into a mountain. I had heard rumors of a great castle from this journal, and I expected to read it all. I wanted to know everything about the royal city of Canterlot. I felt my stomach rumble beneath me, and I realized before I could actually do anything, I had to find some food. I looked up, away from my thinking state, and finally started to get the picture of what actually had occurred in this city.

I smelled ash. Remnants of the city still held high and proud. Most buildings were either never there, or destroyed in the raids on the place. Coals burned red, suggesting that the latest attack had been less than a few days ago. I only saw the buildings at first, but as I continued to wander my eyes, other sights had befallen me. There were bodies everywhere.

There were the trace amounts of skeletal remains, but stacked upon these, bodies of recently dead ponies scattered the grounds. Blood pooled underneath most of them, giving the skeletons underneath a candied look on them. Holes ripped through the sides of many of the stallions, and most of the mares that were left out here had been shot, making it quick and easy. Maybe these savages had some sense of mind, but not much, as they still thought it was safe to kill women or anypony, on that remark. I couldn't bear to stare at this scene. Nothing was left of this town, save the library. It was a horrendous sight. I had a weapon to myself, but this was only for hunting. The thought of killing another living pony wasn't even civil!

I ran out, hearing nothing in my head but the cries of the dead ponies. They rang throughout my head, the tears streaming from my cheeks as I galloped away. The further I ran, the darker I realized it was getting, the smell of grass emanating up to my nose. I loved grass, and my crying dulled down as memories began flooding back to me. I remembered running through flowers as a young filly. I ran by my lonesome self, but it didn't matter. I always found an apple tree somewhere, choosing to rest under it for the night as I gazed up to the stars.

I stopped, finally opening my eyes and gazing in awe. All around me, there were wonderful creatures. They were obviously well taken care of, as none of them looked to be rabid or hungry. They all stared at me like any animal would. Stupidly. I loved animals, don't get me wrong, but they never did anything in their lives to help me. Or, at least I thought they didn't. My memory was still foggy, but everything I was experiencing in this, what appeared to be a forest, was bringing memories fresh to my mind.

The animals, finally gaining some sense, started to run away. All except one deer. I stared at this deer, my mouth beginning to fill with saliva. I realized at this moment how hungry I truly was. I picked up the hammer in my teeth, and charged the deer. It only got one step back before I landed on it. The hammer wasn't necessary. I could tell by the crack of it's neck as I landed down on it. It's eyes were now eternally opened, and I couldn't find a way to shut them. They creeped me out, but it was food. The smell coming from this deer made me feel almost ravenous. I smelled a freshly roasted deer leg. I was ready to cook it, to begin my ravenous approach on the food, when I realized I was lost, with nothing to cook with.

I figured I was a fairly strong mare, despite my size, and lifted up the deer carcass. It was a really young deer, only just a fawn, which made it light to carry. Though lost, I couldn't have gone very far and started to wander back from the path I came. But, what was the path I came from?

"Damn..." I caught myself muttering. This place was finally starting to catch up with me. I wandered for at least fifteen minutes when I saw a light. This light shined above everything else I had seen today, what with the clouds covering the sun. To me, though, it wasn't a light. It was a beacon of hope. A hope that there was a sane pony somewhere here that I could talk to, and share food with.

As I happened upon the light, I discovered a shack. It wasn't as much a shack as it was a cottage, but a lantern hung outside. The lantern itself looked as if it hadn't been touched in at least a century, dust caking the outside. The light still found a way to cut through the dust, revealing a comforting warmth to anypony who happened upon it. I felt much stronger than I did, until I tried the door.

The door itself was locked. The cottage seemed to be in tip-top condition, but it had to be locked. I looked for a key, dropping the carcass I was holding to the ground. I searched everywhere, even tried the lantern, but it burned me to just the touch of it. The only option I could think of was to break into the house through one of the two windows that were visible. I had never really committed a crime though, unless you counted a deer killing a crime in this terrible world.

I finally came to a consensus with my mind. It was futile to just stand out here looking stupid when inside there could be a fire and a place to cook this deer with. I had to break one of the window's, hoping that my luck would turn around and that the elements would not invade. I picked up a small rock in my mouth, brought my head back, and flung it.

The loudest shattering, even that of the silence-breaking hammer, I had heard, erupted from that one tiny rock. I couldn't stand around here any longer, in case I was found. I just picked up the deer and hopped inside, ducking down and out of sight before being able to be seen. I was alive.

~~~

The inside of the cottage itself was even more magnificent than the infinite light outside. All around me, potions were lined up in disarray on shelves. I set the deer down carefully, eyes glazing over every last nook and cranny. As if it wasn't enough already, there was a fireplace in the middle of the room! I would eat heartily tonight, and, from the looks of it, have plenty to drink.

As I looked over the bottles, though, I realized the only things to drink here were spells. This pony had everything, from "Poison Joke" to "Heart's Desire." I saw potions, like "Invisibility" and even "Transformation!" This place was exciting, and I knew that it would come in handy for when I had to leave. I brought a few down and set them on the ground. I only took three. I didn't want the pony who was living here to suddenly walk in and think she had been robbed. This wasn't burglary...was it?

I picked up one interesting thing that caught my attention, called "Instant Fire," and chucked it down into the fireplace. Flames burst forth from the coals. These would last for a few hours, which was more than enough time for me to eat. I picked up the deer carcass and, without thinking, just threw it in. I knew I would have to take it out, but it would take a long time to cook. Instead, I decided to pull out the journal I had scavenged and read a passage or two from it.

~~~

Entry #32

Zecora jus' got back from Manehattan! That zebra friend o' ours always lent a hoof (Even if she was a zebra) when we needed it most. Ah wasn't too careful when I had tried gettin' t'er house and all, but the company was still enough. Living in the Ever Free Forest was a mighty dangerous task, but Zecora was our only real hope that could manage against the...fights, Ah would say, out near the streets of Fillysberg. Now Ah know that the Cakes think that we don't wanna help them, but in the fact o' the matter, we do. At least, Ah've been trying t'tell 'em that. There was nothing that Ah could do that Princess Celestia hadn't already tried. So, instead, Ah went over to Zecora's place while the others searched elsewhere. She wasn't much help, though, saying she was on 'er way out, away from this "Cruel and undignified place we call Equestria." I couldn't believe 'er! She was gonna leave us stranded 'ere while she got comfort and safety somewhere else!? I got disgusted in 'er and started t'buck around 'er place, before she cast some spell on me. When Ah woke u, Ah was in the barn back at Sweet Apple Acres. Ah began to cry, and nothing that anypony could say would stop it. It's be lucky if the timberwolves got t'er first. She truly was, in mah eyes, a gypsy. Evil to the core. She would never, NEVER, become an apple... honestly, though, she still has some good left in 'er. The good guys always win, and with 'er being mah friend fer so long, I knew she would never desert us.

I wondered who had written this. They were brutally honest when it came to other ponies, but they still believed that good triumphed evil. So far, it had shown to be true. I had escaped the hole in the library, and I had found a safe place to spend the night. The world was a good place for now. The evil wasn't winning. I smelled the air, which was now succulent with roasted deer. I looked over at the deer, realizing it was probably done and, grabbing it quickly by the hoof, brought it out.

My tongue was on fire. I didn't expect it to be this hot, but my mind screamed PAIN! I tried to find a way of cooling it down, but there was nothing I could think of. I searched around and saw exactly what I needed: water. I rushed over to the cauldron full of water and buried my face in it's depths. Coolness washed over my body, relief hitting me.

"Oh my...." was all I could mutter as I came up. my nose was stuffy now, disabling me from smelling anything. I could hear the crackle of the flesh melting off of the deer and I glanced over. The sight was actually better than I thought it would be. I could see the meat on the deer, tenderly roasted and cooked to perfection. I Eagerly bounced over to it, stopping myself right before I let myself dig in. This meat was really hot! I couldn't eat it until it was cooled down. Really well.

In the meantime, I had other things on my mind. I couldn't stay cooped up here, and I saw some bottles and a piece of paper sitting on the table next to the cauldron. I first filled up these bottles to the top, water starting to ooze out of the top. I sealed them up and then looked over to the piece of paper. It was a note.

"To anypony who finds this now, remember that what you reap, is what you sow

I could not stay here any longer, for the army is growing stronger. I will help you ponies win this war, but first we must even out the score. I have gone to get some troops for you, I'll be back soon, and that is true.

Zecora

So this was the cottage of Zecora, the zebra who had refused to help the supposedly Western pony in the journal. I was amazed by how much she knew about potion brewing. Then again, the pony in the journal had also said that Zecora was a gypsy at first. Could this have been true? Could Zecora have been some kind of witch doctor? Right now, it didn't matter, as she was not here. I needed to find somepony else, and while my food was cooling down, this seemed to be a great time to do so.

As I opened the cottage door, I could immediately tell that something was off. The air felt staler and, unlike the delicious smell in the cottage, out here it smelled like rancid deer. I looked around, hearing nothing but a small snarl. I was obviously not the only pony out here who was fascinated by the smell from inside the cottage. I caught sight of two glowing green eyes coming from the bushes to my right. I heard a slight bark and as the thing leaped out at me, I began running to my left. I charged through the forest, the creature hot on my trail. When I turned, I had gained some leverage on this chase, but not by much. I had but a few seconds gained and if I didn't get any faster, this would be the end of me.

I kept stretching out my wings, but they would not help me fly. The magic of my Pegasus powers was apparently missing. This was a time where I had needed it most. As green flashed before my eyes, the putrid smell making my eyes tear up, my wings only slightly flapped, lifting me slightly above the ground. Elation leapt through my body. I flapped faster, only getting three feet in the air. As the wolf-like creature caught up to me, it lashed out with it's claws, nicking at my legs, blood slowly pouring from the now open wound. Luckily, three feet was just enough to avoid it's grasp entirely.

I grasped onto a tree branch, holding fast as the wolf ran past me. I was relieved when it did so, but it stopped, lingering around under the tree. I pulled myself up with what strength I had left. That run from the wolf had tired me out, and the most tiring part was trying to fly. I don't know where I got the strength to fight, but now was a good time to take note of my surroundings.

I was entirely surrounded by trees, plus one wolf. The trees scared me, actually. The trees had faces all over them. The faces were twisted and contorted into maniacal laughter and even crazy clown faces. I closed my eyes, taking note of what I heard, instead.

All around me, birds were chirping. I hadn't noticed this before. I could hear the deep breathing of the wolf, and the smell was still below me. I heard trees rustling and there was a rain cloud in the distance, thunder booming from it. In here, it didn't seem to be raining as it was outside of the forest, but it was just as cool as the rain. I even heard branches from trees off in the distance. No doubt that squirrels were scurrying around, trying to evade predators. I was hoping that these predators were much smaller than I was, unlike the wolf that had been chasing me.

Wait a minute...where was the smell that the wolf brought out when it was around? I couldn't smell it anymore. Opening my eyes, I realized that the wolf had left, and that my leg gash was much wider than I had originally thought it was. I needed to make it back to Zecora's FAST, or I probably wouldn't make it out of these woods alive. I climbed slowly down the tree, wincing in pain as I hit my leg against the tree multiple times on the way down. This wasn't very soothing.

"Dammit! Why does this have to be so painful!?" was all that rushed through my head as I limped back to the small cottage. I didn't realize how far I had actually run. It wasn't even close to how far I had thought. I had run about three minutes distance and was there quicker than I anticipated. That wasn't exactly a bad thing, though. I was quite glad when I got there and found a large collection of healing potions. One swift swig later, the blood had stopped. My leg wound wasn't necessarily closing up, but the pain had gone from my leg and the bleeding had stopped. I knew it would take a day or two, and I was ready to rest here for as long as I needed. I turned around, my attention shifting to the cooked meat that lay behind me. I rushed over (as quickly as I could, in my state) to the body, digging my face down. I peeled off slabs of meat at a time, eating them more savagely than I would like to admit. As if I hadn't eaten in days, I had gotten a third through before I was full.

I felt like a savage creature like the wolf, but I couldn't help myself. I didn't realize it felt like days since I had even eaten. It most likely was days since I had eaten. The food out here, or so it seemed, was very scarce. I would need to make this last so I could find more food in time. I wasn't about to finish a whole deer on my first day with it. Instead, I found the bed that so gingerly lay beside a wall (luckily with no window), and settled in for the night. It seemed like it was going to be a peaceful night yet again for me. As my mind wandered off yet again, the starting of a terrifying nightmare began.

~~~

I was being chased again. This time, I wasn't in the forest, and it was not a wolf that was chasing me. I was in the streets of an entirely new town, one which I had never seen before. In this nightmare, I was being chased by....something. A large pony chased after me. She was all blue with slits of black. Her eyes were that of a tiger, vertical slits that would scare the teeth out of any pony. Her laugh was thunder, booming every word she spoke to me.

"YOU CANNOT ESCAPE FROM ME! I AM NIGHTMARE MOON!" She bellowed.

Nightmare Moon? Who was Nightmare Moon? Why did she want me? I didn't have time to answer myself. I just continued running. The more I ran, though, the closer she got to me. I ran, but the house in front of me kept slipping further and further away. The town around me was melting, and bugs crawled from everywhere, consuming the ponies that walked the streets. The ponies took no notice to me, but as soon as the bugs latched onto them, the screaming began. The music that played was horrific. The screams were mixed into every verse and I watched as their bodies were turned to bones. When finally, I arrived at the house, which suddenly appeared in front of me, I ran in, only to be faced with a new nightmare. A spike pit lay below me. I fell...deeper...and deeper...into a seemingly never ending pit. I hit the spikes, when.....

I was screaming, the bed rattling along with it. That was the most terrifying thing I had ever encountered. What did it mean? I couldn't figure out what any of that nightmare meant, but somehow, I had a feeling that my fate had already been sealed. I stood up shakily on the ground, my hooves wobbling with every step I took. I walked over to the mirror in the corner, staring at myself. My green coat and brown mane complemented my short stature.

I could hear my bones rattling and as the events of the dream came up to the front of my mind, I suddenly felt myself begin to lose my dinner.

After I wretchedly finished my process of puking again, I stood up, some dripping from the corners of my mouth as I stared up at the mirror again. I was still innocent. I was the good. The good always beat the evil, did it not? I could win if I had to, but could I really kill somepony? These were questions I knew I had to discover on my journey.

For now, Idecided it was time to leave. I grabbed a couple of potions I found relevant to the journey i was to face ahead, packed up some of the deer I still had left, got my bottles of water, and put on my saddlebags. I decided that I didn't need the hammer, for in the safe there, I found a sword. It proved to be very lethal and i tucked it into a loop on the saddlebags, feeling equipped and ready for what was ahead.

As I trudged out, another thought, a memory, crossed my mind again.

"The good guys always win, and with 'er being mah friend fer so long, I knew she would never desert us.

The Bakery

Why did they have to make the journey so long? The trudge out of the forest itself was grueling enough, what with all the vines grabbing at my hooves. When I got to Ponyville, however, I realized finding a place to stay, or even a place at all, would be a task of it’s own.

At one point, this city must have been beautiful. The litter of painted wood and the stubbles of trees provided me with that fact. The ponies probably walked about, greeting every other pony they met along the way. With the six friends at the center of the town, there couldn't have been any trouble with this town. I wondered how the town could collapse under such watchful eyes. Then again, how did this Princess Celestia fall victim to it, being the highest pony in power at the time? At this point, it seemed that I would have to find another place to stay, and my hopes dropped. To my knowledge, there wasn’t another town or even a village within miles of here. My disappointment levels reached their maximum as I stepped over the body of another pony. This pony in particular wasn't very special, but I noticed something on the ground next to him.

Picking it up, I saw that it was a badge. Over the years, most of the words had faded, but I could still read certain parts of it. Of what I could see, I made out the words, “Royal…...Guard.” It meant nothing to me, but in the future, I might need it for something. If a royal badge was sitting out here, I could possibly get into high-tech places.

I tucked it neatly away in my saddlebags (Well….the saddlebags on my back) and continued on my way, the death level rising as I walked closer to the other edge of the town. It was my assumption that more ponies would be found dead at the edge of the town, where everypony had tried to escape to.

I couldn't stand this town any longer. I had already cried all the tears that I could, and the sights here made me want to vomit...again. Just the thought of what might have happened here shook my body over and over again. I couldn't bear it, and I started to slowly trot, ready to escape another place that would give me nightmares forever.

~~~

The bakery had caught my eyes. It was an actual antique building! This time, the lights were off, and nopony seemed to be residing here, but if there was food inside of here, I wouldn’t complain about it. This was a bakery, which meant there had to be something of usefulness in here. I had the deer in my bags, but it wasn’t going to last me forever, and by the time I reached the next town, I would probably be starving.

The pink paint on the outside had chipped away, the flakes still flying through the air. Some hit my nostrils, an old smell running up my nose. It wasn’t the smell of death, but it was definitely an old smell. For some odd reason it reminded me of cupcakes. My mood seemed to brighten at the smell. On the outside, a large sign announced the shop. It seemed to be of a newer model, possibly only fifty years of age, but the paint hadn’t faded as it did the building itself. The sign read, “Sugarcube Corner, Land of Dreams,” and was very welcoming to the eye.

I stepped inside, first just my head so I could search for any threats. When I had found nothing lethal waiting for me as I expected to do, I pushed my way in, through the four bodies huddled against the door. These were old. Not like the old smell that the paint had given off, but the old smell of death, which I had grown so accustomed to. I searched them up and down. The larger of the two seemed to be a married couple.

One of them bore a baker’s hat, and the other had two pink pearl earrings. Both were locked in an eternal kiss. The other two corpses, however, brought tears to my eyes. It appeared to be twins.They were only at a young filly’s age and just learning the basics of being a pony. One was a unicorn, and the other was a pegasus. I had to turn away for a second, tears beginning to fall in mourning of the babies. I could only imagine what had occurred here, but I preferred not to, for the sake of this family, and for my own sake.

No sound filled the room, but in the near distance, I could hear polka music. It sounded like a band was playing. It was coming from upstairs and I quickly dashed up, not bothering to search the rooms downstairs. As I crashed into the door, making it fall forward and hurting my nuzzle, I realized that there was a scratching noise, and the same music was playing over and over again.

The room itself smelled of freshly baked cupcakes, and it was easily the brightest room I had come across in this barren village. In the center of the room, there stood a cannon with three balloons on them. The balloons probably meant that this was some sort of “party cannon,” but I would have to set it off to see for myself what it truly meant. The music was being blasted from a record player in the corner, which had obviously been stuck until I crashed into the room, setting it off from it’s continuous loop.

My hopes here were brought down as well, and I went over, turning the record off and making my way to the cannon that stood brightly in the center. It seemed to be in mint condition and, it didn't need to be lit. It made sense to me. The ponies in the town before didn’t really have true “weapons,” so why would they need something that could shoot at a supersonic speed. I pulled the cord, wholly expecting a small balloon to pop funnily out of the hole.

What I had expected was not what I got. A loud party buzzer sound erupted as a whole lot of streamers exploded and shot at the wall, making it decorative, as if for a party. The shock of the sudden party in a cannon made me fall backwards, right onto my butt. A pain erupted from my flank and I looked over, realizing that the gash had spread wider, and that I needed more healing. I pulled a potion out of my pack, quickly drinking it and feeling the pain go away. Looking down, I realized that it was actually beginning to heal this time, but only by a little. There was still a gash, but I seemed to be fine for now. Everything was a party in here (Except for the damn skeletons down there…) and on the wall where the party had shot out, I spotted something. Upon moving closer to it, I realized it was a note, much like the one I had seen at Zecora’s.

“To anypony who finds this letter,

I sense that there is something coming closer to Ponyville. I have gathered all my friends, who are currently waiting at Twilight’s Library, so I could tell them what was coming. I have just finished my final party with all of the residents of Ponyville. I can’t bear to tell them that something was coming to kill them. After the oven downstairs dinged, I pulled out my last batch of cupcakes, my favorite dessert, and hid them up here. I am expecting a pony named Sodapop to come through and find them, using only her nose. I do not know when she will arrive but I do know that if any other pony finds this, they must stay and wait for her here. It is crucial to your mission. Please, bring the light back to the world. I can’t make all of Equestria smile anymore as I did Ponyville. It is up to you now. Thank you.

Your everlasting party hardy friend,

Pinkamena Diane Pie”

So this was Pinkie Pie. She seemed sad, unlike her room. She had specifically designed this place to last forever. To bake her treats in, even after she had left the realm. I had read my name in the letter, but took no real notice of it. There can be many ponies named Sodapop, but since this was from a hundred years ago, I wasn’t even alive. She couldn't of known me and, therefore, it must be a different pony. Nonetheless, I started sniffing around. The room itself was sweet, like candy. There was no distinguishable smell, but when I moved away from the note, the room began to smell less sweet, and more bitter.

I moved back towards the note, the aroma filling my mouth with a sweet taste, although there was nothing there. I followed the scent to a wardrobe which rested beside the note, and opened it up, revealing…….nothing.

There was nothing in this closet except a wooden wall. I wasn’t surprised. These cupcakes that she baked couldn’t still be here after all these years. I poked my hoof around inside, feeling foalish to even think that there would be anything in here. Although, when I hit a button on the side, I was shocked. A panel opened up on the far wall in the back of the wardrobe.

Inside were the most spectacular treats I had ever laid my eyes on!Pink frosting glazed in a swirl across the top, a marshmallow-looking cream drizzling down the sides. The cupcakes were vanilla, but sprinkles had been added in, making them, in a sense, magical. I grabbed the tray, covered in plastic, and set it delicately on top of everything in my packs, only taking one for a quick eat. I deserved one of these after all I had been through.

I began to put it in my mouth, when I heard a shuffling downstairs. Setting the cupcake down, I pulled out the sword I had looted (Still not proud of breaking into Zecora’s) from the cottage in the forest, and sneakily crept down the stairs. It seemed to be coming from the kitchen, but even I was unsure of myself. I had met so much around here, anything could be around that corner.

Peeking in, I saw nothing, but as I made my way inside, my eyes went wide. There was a pony there. It was a LIVE pony! His body was covered in blood, and his cutie mark bore the picture of a battery, something which I had never seen before. I also realized that he was baking. It was obvious that he probably wouldn't be much of a threat to me, but I didn't really know who I could trust.

Stepping in, I landed my hoof on a wrapper of what seemed to be muffin wraps. The loud crunch forced the pony in the room to turn around, and I realized I had been completely wrong. This was no friend. He was missing an eye, a knife in his teeth. He was sharpening it, giving the impression of baking with the materials surrounding him.

“Well hello there, little pony...have you come to bake with me?”

His voice was raspy, and it scared me. It had a deep tone to it, and the glint from his knife illuminated the blood in his teeth. It seemed he had just finished killing something out there. I could only hear my heart in my ears as I screamed and began to ran out. He barely caught my tail, forcing me to clumsily trip over my own hooves. As he got down upon me, my luck had apparently run out.

His teeth glowed red as he put the knife to my throat. I closed my eyes, trying to scream. His right front hoof was crushing down on my throat. I could even feel my blood trying to squeeze past into my body. My vision was going blurry and I knew it was the end. On the point of passing out, I heard a whizzing from the right. All I saw was an arrow going right through the head of this killer, right before I conked out.

~~~

I woke up to a voice. It was just one voice, talking to itself. I fluttered my eyelids a couple of times, trying to make sure I was alive. When my vision became clearer, I sat up from the cot I was laying on. I didn't know how long I had been out of it, but I felt more rested than I had before, even if I had gone to sleep due to lack of breath.

I looked around. I got startled and jumped back. The stallion was right beside me, watching me intently. I thought my leg would hurt at the jump, but looking back, saw it was all bandaged up.

“D...Did you do this?” I asked him, a quiver in my voice.

He just stared at me, still muttering under his breath. I caught only short parts of it, but he was talking about me. I waved my hoof in his face, snapping him back to reality.

“H...huh!? Oh, you’re awake. Good, I feared that you might have gone into a coma.”

A coma, eh? Well, if it was that bad originally, he must of had some skill in the art of a doctor. His cutie mark wasn’t doctor related. It depicted a picture of a cat. I wondered what that could mean, but when he noticed I was looking at it, he answered for me.

“Oh...I see you noticed my mark. My destiny should have been a pet sitter. I used to be good with animals. I had to help everypony, but lately I haven’t been able to do that. You’re lucky I saved you.”

I quickly thanked him, apologizing for making him go through so much trouble to save me. He obviously had been through a lot of things. His red coat was charred, most likely burned. His mane was covered in dust, and really messy. I saw that he had bullet wounds in his hooves, but they didn't seem to faze him. He looked as if he actually enjoyed it, as if it was pleasurable to be a pony that could hurt ponies.

“Mister, you killed that pony! You hurt an innocent life!”

“Innocent!? HAHAHA! He wasn’t even close to innocent. He was a raider. He was going to kill you if I hadn't stepped in. He had just come from eating his raw dinner, and obviously you were in the way. Luckily, I come around the bakery every day looking for a young girl that was mentioned in a note.”

My eyes went wide. He was looking for a mare named Sodapop. My name was Sodapop! I jumped up, squealing in delight. He looked at me like I was crazy, but at that moment, I felt exceptionally crazy. I had found a new potential friend!

“Excuse me, mister, but my name is Sodapop! I found that note! I found the cupcakes!”

I opened up my pack to him, revealing the mouthwatering treats that glowed as the top came up off the bag. His mouth seemed to be as salivated as mine was. I took two out eagerly and handed one to him. He took no time in savoring it, but I just licked mine, getting the first taste of a cupcake (after the incident in Sugarcube Corner). That reminded me that I didn’t know where I was, but for now I didn’t really care. My life was spared and I had somepony to talk to.

“Where did you find these? I've been searching everywhere for them!”

“They were in the back of the wardrobe, accessible through a button on the side. I never got a chance to eat one, having dropped it at the sound of that raider.”

He looked at me again, his eyes sparkling and I didn’t doubt that mine were too. These cupcakes were delicious! Every particle on my tongue was a party. A storm was brewing in my mouth, and it was a slice of heaven going down my throat. I followed suit to him, demolishing my cupcake in a flash of lightning. I looked up at him, slightly embarrassed at my eating habits, and saw his face. It was covered in cupcake frosting. I couldn’t help but start laughing.

Quickly, he started laughing too, and I lifted a hoof to my face. It was covered in just as much frosting. We both were laughing in there for at least a couple of minutes. When it died down, he began to speak again.

“You seem like a nice mare. I feel like I can trust you now. My name is Silver Bear. It’s a pleasure meeting you, of course! I thought that everypony in that deserted town was insane! It’s nice to finally see a friendly face around here..”

I agreed with him. His name seemed silly, but who was I to argue? My name is Sodapop! For a while we just talked about our lives. I told him all about my amnesia, and the adventures I had since then. I told him about my feelings, and how I had been scared for most of my trip. He told me that he had been in Ponyville for a year now. He had found food in other cities, but he regularly returned to check for a mare named Sodapop. Luck had befell him and here I was, resting in his….cave, an injury to my leg. Now I finally took the chance, while we were talking, to explore this cave.

It felt damp in here, the smell of rain coming off of the walls. It wasn’t very dark, a lantern illuminating the whole small enclave. There wasn’t very much stuff inside, save a couple of cots, the lantern, and what appeared to be a refrigerator. The whole cave seemed blackened by shadow, and when Bear stood up, I got up too.

“We need to go. This place is going to be captured soon, and we can’t be here when they find us.”

I got immediately frightened again.

“When….who finds us?”

“The Dragons.”

Manehattan

Entry #45

Applejack has been really worried lately. She says that everywhere she looks, there’s death. I think she’s just paranoid. There has never been a death in Equestria...EVER! Most ponies barely know the word. I don’t really want to explain much on it. Let’s just say, that ponies can’t be alive anymore once a death has occured. Applejack has pretty much been confined in her barn. We need to bring her out soon, or I fear that another life may actually be lost. Maybe….I can teleport her over here. Pinkie said she had it all planned, but I can’t fully trust that she does.What do I do…?

Twilight Sparkle

So Twilight Sparkle must have been the pony whose library I had visited. We had stopped for a quick snack (consisting mainly of cupcakes) about a couple miles away from the nearest town (or so he said). He claimed we were going to Manehattan to find something useful. He wouldn’t give me any real details, but after saving my life, I have to trust him. He also said that ponies actually lived there, in a secret little group.

At first, I really doubted him, but the more we talked, the more I realized exactly what he had been through and what he was fighting for. It wasn’t just about getting by alive. It was repopulation and sunshine. As far as I knew, bringing back light to this dump of a world was impossible.

“So umm….Bear…..where do you truly live? Where did you grow up? What has life been like and why exactly did you help me? You can’t lie to me, you know….”

He looked at me with sorrow in his eyes. He seemed dead. His eyes were a bleak black and grey. In his eyes, the pain over the years had built up inside of him. Finally, he spoke quickly. I missed a couple lines, but got exactly what I had asked for.

“Nowhere, everywhere, terrible, my mission.”

Ok, so he was going to make me solve riddles now. The last one was the only one I didn’t understand. He had a mission, of course, and within it, he had to help me? It didn’t make sense, but when I heard the sniffling from my side, I knew not to push it any further than I already had. He needed somepony to be there for him, and I was planning on making it fully comfortable for him.

A ways up ahead I saw a town. This had to be Manehattan, but I didn’t see any signs of life. No smoke was rising from the town. Nothing was destroyed, save a few buildings, and it looked to be deserted. I got the sense that Silver Bear had been lying to me. I wanted to desert him, run, and hide away someplace nice. I couldn’t do that, knowing I’d be lost and without supplements for life without him.

Coming close to the town, he told me I needed to be quiet while he talked to the guards that were going to be stationed outside of the town. I knew better than to question him, and closed my mouth up.

~~~

Walking in to the town itself was a sight for sore eyes. At least, right next to the town. Barren and stripped of resources, I could finally see the ponies in the street. Most looked to be starving. It smelled highly of excrements and their stomachs were basically bones. The skin stuck to their ribs like a cat would latch on to a blanket he/she liked.

I stared at them with a sadness in my heart. It was horrible that I had things to eat, but these ponies out here...they just...couldn’t live. Even though they were hungry and without hope, somehow, I felt a small tingle of rebuilding left in them. It was possible to change the scenario, and make these ponies happy once again. I looked over to Silver Bear, who was talking to a guard, and decided to walk in on them. He wasn’t having much luck himself.

“Hey there, you two! How are you both? Silver Bear, may we please enter Manehattan now?”

“I...I’m sorry Soda, but it’s not possible. A terrible attack has just left the town, and nopony is allowed to enter until the criminals are caught. The guard says most of the ponies will die before the next full moon.”

A sharp pain shot through my heart. These ponies had to live. They needed hope, and friendship. If that wasn’t there, what could save the pony race? I couldn’t just let an issue like this pass me by.

“Bear, we’re going after those criminals. They are going to be brought to justice, and these ponies here are going to be saved. You may try to stop me, but nothing in Equestria will prevent me from saving innocent souls.”

His mouth hung open, stunned. His breath enveloped my face, making me cough. It smelled like he had never brushed his teeth before, and I found it absolutely disgusting. He looked to be in awe at my plan, yet at the same time, he looked horrified. He had obviously not fought many ponies out here. Maybe he was too kind. Then, why didn’t he let the pony kill me…..he killed that raider. Maybe he was just scared at the words I had spoken. I was pretty intimidating.

“I’m not letting you go out there.”

WHAT!? That was his reasoning!? It was illogical and I told him he couldn’t stomp me. He just needed to be reassured that I knew what I was doing.

“Bear, you know I love ponies. They are not just going to slip by me and die on my watch. I will feel as if I’m responsible for it. If those raiders….er….criminals...aren’t caught, they will go destroy the hopes of another town. They’ll just continue until Equestria is dead. I have my sword, and right now, I really need your help. Please, Silver Bear, if you have any dignity and kindness in your heart, help me.”

A tear crept from it’s eye, a shadow of his old self.

“They killed my family. We were at the park. I myself was just a filly….”

[Flashback]

“Hey dad, come over here! I found a catew-piwwa!”

A bright sunny day in Fillysburg, it was a beautiful day for a picnic. I had been searching around the trees for wildlife. I loved the idea of life and the universe. Life was everything to me, and I was hoping to make the best use that I could of it. Even my family supported me which, in Fillysburg, seemed hard to accomplish. My dad walked over to me, inspecting what I had found.

“Haha, nice job, son! This one was too small for me to recognize at first! It looks amazing. Hey, over here we have some food. Why don’t you come join your mom, brother and I?”

I felt my tummy rumbling. It did seem like an ideal time for some lunch, and the hay around here was too fresh to be true. Trotting over to the park bench, I felt the sun on my coat. It was warm, and I found it really comforting. The sun was a beacon of light and hope that there were days ahead of us that were better than others. Looking out at the table ahead of me, I saw the hay burgers piled high and my family was sitting around, a special place for me between my parents.

My parents were a safe zone. I could go to them with all of my problems and they would always help me. I loved them, and nothing could change that. We would definitely be together forever.

The burgers smelled absolutely divine. Freshly roasted and waves of pleasure invading my nostrils, I could hear the sizzling of them, fresh off of the grill.

“Ok, everypony, let us say grace to Celestia!” My father announced.

All of us closed our eyes, my father beginning to pray to our goddesses. Suddenly, a shot rang out in the distance. I knew not to open my eyes, but the screams kept getting louder….and closer. I needed to run, but I couldn’t do it. My father just continued, louder than before, until he heard my mom scream. We all opened our eyes at that point. My brother’s face was partially bloody, and my mother’s head had been burst open. A rock lay lodged into her skull, an instant kill.

My father stood up, biting into the rock and pulling it out. Screaming in rage, he ran towards the murderer, a look of pure fury in his eyes. I always believed that eyes told a person everything that they were feeling at that moment. Right now, looking at my father’s eyes, I could tell nothing else was on his mind but murder.

I felt my brother clamp onto my hind legs, pouting. We had just lost our mother, and he was taking this a bit worse than I was. I showed no emotion on my face, yet my mind swam with thoughts of her. Memories flooded me, and although they were great, I couldn’t bring myself to cry.

I watched as my father ran towards the pony who had attacked mom, and his eyes went wide. He had noticed, just as I did, the sword in front of his body. He had no time to react, and instantly, he wasn’t one anymore. Two parts of him were now strewn across the ground. His organs were easily visible through both parts, and I had to keep myself from throwing up.

Next thing I remember, I was running. I had put my brother onto my back, and ran. I wasn’t going to lose another soul, and I couldn’t fight them. I ran and ran until I hit a forest. I had never seen it before, but that wasn’t going to stop me. I charged in, screaming the whole way.

I tripped over a branch right at the entrance, launching my brother five feet away. He landed with a loud THUD and I ran over to him. He had but a scrape on his flank, and his cutie mark was slightly faded. I couldn’t help him, but I saw a shed about twenty feet away.

“Stay here.” I commanded him. I didn’t think he would actually be moving anyways.

The cottage was fairly new, and there was a pony inside. I asked him if he could help my brother and, to my surprise, he was a medic. I wa relieved and as he grabbed his medical kit, I burst through the door, stopping dead in my tracks.

A raider stood over my brother, teeth buried in his neck. My brother’s mouth was shooting out blood, and a gash tore through his neck. His eyes were popping out of their sockets and, it appeared, the raider was eating him alive! Of course, he was dead now, but that didn’t make it any more human.

I watched in horror as the raider looked up, grinning at me. He picked up one of my brother’s eyes, looking over it carefully. Then, he decided to find a way to make me lose my stomach. He put the eyeball into his mouth, chewing slowly and, with every bite, my rage pent up more and more. As he swallowed, I screamed in rage. I ran headfirst into the raider, charging until I heard his back break against the nearest tree.

I kept hoof-punching him until I got tired. It made no sense to me that anypony would kill any other pony. Now my whole family was dead, and the raiders were to blame. They were going to die at my hands, no matter what. I picked up my brother once again and walked out solemnly, leaving the medical pony behind. I went over to the bench, picking up my parents. It was hopeless now. They were never coming back. I’d just have to mourn their loss.

[End flashback]

I stared at him, myself unmoving. That was worse than anything I knew I would ever experience. Finally, I felt the dam in my head break, crashing water from my eyes. I put my hooves around him and thanked him for saving me. I apologized to him for his family, and for everything I had thought about him. I could never imagine what he went through, but I knew that I wasn’t going to leave him. Ever.

“I...I’m always here for y..you Bear. Thank you for lasting.”

My words were stuttered by sobs, and I probably looked miserable. I sat down, bringing him with me. We cuddled there for a long time. He wasn’t talking, or even crying, but I knew what he felt. I wasn’t going to move away from him until he got up and started walking again. He was my patient now, and I had to take care of him. Instead, I took out the diary again, this time reading from a whole new perspective what was going on with the friends.

Entry #38

Ummm…...i...is this ok to write in now? I heard i..it was a bad thing to t...talk about my f...feelings. I...I need to get them out though, so I have to b...brave up! Ok, so last night, I was walking through the town. I had to get some food for Angel. He was being extra impatient today, and I couldn’t disappoint him. He was the most...oh I’m getting off topic. Anyways, I was walking through the town and I heard scuffling coming from a house in front of me. It was dark and I knew I needed light, so I knocked on the door, waiting for some help. A moment later, the door opened and two mares were there, still arguing. It was unusual to watch, as there was never any fighting in Ponyville.

I tried asking for some light to get back home, but they wouldn’t listen to me. Even my stare didn’t work. The only pony that listened to me was a little filly inside. She was a big help and brought me a lantern. I thanked her, but had nothing to give her. I knew Angel would be mad, but I gave the filly an apple. Her eyes glowed with happiness, and I was glad I could be so kind to her. Walking away, I knew the door hadn’t closed and, more importantly, I knew something was wrong. No pony here ever fought.

I’ve also been feeling weak lately. My friends haven’t been talking to me as much and I really hope that things improve quickly. THe only friendship I’ve gotten lately was an invitation to a party at Twilight’s house next weekend. I knew that I shouldn’t go, but I had to see if my friends were ok. Though, when the mail mare Derpy came round, I accidentally yelled at her. Is there something wrong with me?

Fluttershy

Wow. What were these? They didn’t really excite me, but I felt compelled to the writing in this book. I felt as if I understood these ponies all too well. Obviously Fluttershy was a kind pony, but she had been growing stressed. It was the only solution to her rudeness to this “Derpy.” I understood what she was going through. I looked through the notebook, just flipping about pages, and I found one interesting one that caught my eye. Looking over, I noticed Bear had fallen asleep, and I had nothing to lose. I opened up and was brought into the world of friends again.

Entry #1

Hello there….umm…..journal. My name is Twilight Sparkle. I’m a student of Princess Celestias’. I am, of course, her favorite and most hardworking student. I don’t actually go to a school, but I study friendship and magic in Ponyville. I really love all six of my friends, and now we have this journal to record all of our adventures in. I hope someday a pony will read this and get inspired. I hope that they are filled with hope and will be able to find friends as great as mine someday.

I hope that this journal is filled with fun tales of our future adventures, and to anypony who is reading this, thank you. (Btw, Pinkie Pie says that she needs to tell a mare named Sodapop something. It’s really weird. I wish she wouldn’t be so weird…)

Thank you, Princess Celestia, for everything. I hope I can grow up to be as cool as you one day.

Twilight Sparkle

This was different. Nothing in this entry was dark, or terrible. Friendship existed in all of the land. Twilight Sparkle was an enthusiastic young pony. For now, I had gotten used to the mysterious mare named Sodapop. I was still unconvinced that it was me, but who knew, right? I suddenly felt a burst of energy run through me. I felt much happier and I was ready to continue.

I felt a shaking next to me, and Silver Bear was just standing up.

“Alright, I’m ready to go, Sodapop.”

I didn’t argue and I stood up as well. I didn’t know which way the raiders had gone, but any way was better than no way. I chose the path east of the town, deciding that it was the best option. The path seemed bright and cheery, which was just what we needed! Apart from the occasional body or two along the way, it seemed fine.

I nudged him onward, and started to speak to him. I told him of friendship, and of the six friends I had discovered. I didn’t really tell him about what I had read as much as I tried to tell it in a way that he could experience it. We were on our way to fight, and what a fight it would be. As it was, the first leg of our journey brought a thought to my mind.

“What sort of obstacles will we face and, when faced, how will we overcome them?”

The Stable?

“Help! Help me, somebody! Please!”

We were running, hoping to catch up in time to find this mysterious mare who was calling. Walking down the road itself was easy, but when we hit the remains of what had been a cave, we had to rock climb, making things much more difficult. We heard the screaming when we were nearly at the top. Right next to a mountain, we had assumed that a rockslide had covered this mare as she was doing some sort of activity.

It was coming from directly under us, which was equally as surprising. Bear and I were covered in brown dirt and both of us had a good number of blisters and bruises. Trying to face that mountain of rocks was no piece of cake. Looking down, we noticed trickles of blood running straight up to us, and now we would have to climb all the way back down to rescue a mysterious mare.

“Ugh, let’s just leave her! We can’t save everypony!” Silver Bear tried to argue.

“NO!” I screamed, “We can’t leave an innocent pony just stuck under there! That’s just as bad as leaving a little filly to starve.”

“That’s exactly what we did in Manehattan! You left them so you can go kill raiders who are probably long gone by now! Yea, I like helping people, but you can’t save everypony!”

“Yes I can. Continue on if you want, but I have to save her, with or without you.”

He stopped talking and the air grew silent, all but the screaming of the mare was still. The air smelled of dust, and I looked like a pig. I turned away from Silver Bear, starting my journey back down. I picked up and threw rocks along the way, trying anything to make sure this mare escaped alive and (hopefully) unharmed.

He didn’t call after me, nor did he try to follow me. I didn’t care. He was willing to let this mare die because he was too lazy to work. I don’t even know why I tried to be friends with him. In my mind, he was selfish, rude,and most importantly, unkind. Unlike the pony from the journal, he wouldn’t stop his mission to help a pony because it’d be delaying his prideful self. Well, I didn’t need him anymore. I was going to save this helpless pony from death.

The more rocks I kicked down, the brighter this pony’s future seemed to be. It was only a small rock slide, which made it all the easier. Coughing from a kick up of dust a couple of times, I finally hit the ground, knees wobbling at the touch. It felt amazing to be back someplace solid. It was much...safer.

It seemed digging was hopeless, as more rocks would just fall in your path if you tried to dig a hole or remove rocks slowly. After the many failed attempts at that one, I tried just bucking all the rocks away, but my strength seemed to fail me today. My hooves began to become chafed and I, just as Bear had, was beginning to feel like this was a complete waste of time.

“Do you...need a hoof, Soda?”

I didn’t look up at him. I would never look up to him, so I might as well live up to that status. I just continued to kick rocks away, finally watching the rocks began to move. The only problem, was that there was a boulder blocking everything else off, so I couldn’t move the whole slide without first moving this rock.

“Soda, please...I’m sorry. I didn’t know how much this mare meant to you. After watching you hurt yourself to try to save her, though, I realized that this needed to be done. It wasn’t just a side task. It was a true mission. We can get to those raiders later. For now, it looks like you need some help moving this mammoth of a rock.”

He pushed my chin up with his hooves, and tears fell from my eyes. I could hear my own sobs, loud and proud. He had finally said something worthwhile, and this moment would last in my memory. I could taste the salty sweetness of the tears running onto my tongue, every taste bud exploding with each tear. Suddenly, I felt dirt in my face, and realized that the rockslide was starting to crumble, threatening to cause another barrage upon us. I looked into his eyes and, wiping my moisture away, nodded assuredly to him.

We pushed up against the rock, heaving with every push. We wheezed and panted, and the slab seemed to move so slowly. I closed my eyes and kept pushing until I heard Silver Bear yell at me to stop. I opened my eyes to notice I was ten feet away, the cave entrance now open. I was surprised. When had I learned to do that!? I quickly trotted over to him.

“What happened, Bear!? I was only pushing for a minute or so! How did I get over there?”

“Soda, you were pushing for like, ten minutes. I was shocked to see your perseverance, but the mare is free now. She’s standing inside the cave next to a door. You can go talk to her if you want, but she’s a little shook up, so don’t bother her too much, ok?”

“Gotcha, Bear…”

I cantered over to the young mare. She seemed to be in only her teen years, and probably had just been exploring. Her coat was a stunning red, and her mane matched with a light orange. Her ears were perked up, as if listening for something. The smell of decay rose from her body, but she didn’t look to be hurt, or dead. (Yes, I have heard of dead ponies coming back to life! It’s crazy!) I casually strolled up to her, greeting her as I would any other pony.

“Hey there! I’m Sodapop, that’s my……..acquaintance Silver Bear, and it’s really nice to meet you! I’m so sorry that you got trapped here, but we have rescued you. What were you doing out here anyways.”

As if by instinct, she jerked her head in my direction. Her eyes were bloodshot, and she was whispering under her breath. Something had obviously traumatized her. It had to of been the rockslide, but I didn’t really understand how that was so bad. She had been screaming for us only an hour earlier.

“Um, excuse me, but we heard your calling. Are you ok?”

She just continued whispering. It wasn’t until i nudged her shoulder that she finally did something. She took all of her strength (What was left of it) and took off on a scamper. I watched her figure disappear into the horizon, then I noticed what she had been hiding behind her. There was a small skeleton behind her. It was only a rabbit, but she seemed to have been protecting it. Why would she do that?

“Bear, what are these doors for?”

He came up to me, smiling with glee. It seemed like it would be storytime, so I just sat down to listen to what he had to say about these rusty doors.

“Sodapop, these are the doors to one of the infamous Stables. Nopony really knows how they got here, but according to legend, there was a pony named Twilight Sparkle.”

Twilight Sparkle? I had heard that name before! It was written in the journal, in the first entry!

“Now, Twilight Sparkle somehow knew that this war was coming upon us, so she fashioned three of these. They were supposed to be used for food storage, but soon, these Stables gave way to much larger operations. An underground series of tunnels was devised to make transport of all ponies much easier. Soon, though, more destruction came with the tunnels. Ponies always travelled in packs, and when the packs met up, it got bloody. To the records, no pony survived the Battle of the Tunnels. One day, Twilight Sparkle just closed them up. They’re easily accessible, but no pony ever dares to enter them. If there are still raiders haunting that tunnel, you really do not want to be in there when they come through the area.”

It seemed interesting to me. A secret kept so that raiders could traverse these lands in search of another kill. It was impressive that any tactic like that could have been devised! Even I would never think of such a thing! I wanted to check it out. I eagerly shot up and bolted for the door, but was stopped by a quick Bear.

“Nu uh, Soda, we are NOT going in there! We have a quest to be on!!!!”

“It will only be a minute, Bear. Please! I really want to check it out! I need to! I’ll tell you what.If we go in here, we can come out and immediately go to the raiders, with no more distractions! These tunnels might bring us even closer to justice!”

For a second, he seemed to be contemplating this thought. Finally, he sighed and gave way, allowing me to run past and push with all of my might. The door itself wasn’t budging, but then I felt it opening my way, pushing me towards the wall. I looked up at Bear, holding the door open, as my face turned a bright red.

“Oops…”

~~~

The inside of this Stable was, in fact, very dark. I didn’t expect it, but Bear seemed to be right on the case, He whipped out a flashlight and, in an instant, the Stable was filled with light. The inside wasn’t quite what I had expected, and the smell wasn’t to be desired either.

It smelled of rotting fruits and vegetables in here. I was used to the smell of rot, but this scent seemed to have one hundred times the strength I was used to. I began to breathe through my mouth, which only helped scarcely, trying to take what I could get. Looking around, there wasn’t very much to see. It was a normal room, filled with boxes of rotting stuff. One box in particular was obviously meant to stand out above the rest. Moving towards it, I smelled nothing. The smell around here was just air.

The box in question was gold-plated. On the front, it read “For Extreme Emergencies ONLY! Stay Out!” Obviously somepony hadn’t wanted us to touch it. Though, knowing me, I had to open it. Then I stopped to think.

“What if it’s dangerous inside of that box? I don’t want to be hurt or possibly killed because of curiosity. What if it’s something useful to our team, though? Oooooh what do I do? Let’s open it...very….very...carefully.”

I pushed Bear out of the way and moved over to the side of the box, putting my hoof gently on the handle in front of the box. I slowly pushed it open, half expecting something to fly out, meaning to hit somepony. Nothing sprang forth, though, and the box lix had been entirely opened. I stood up, feeling my knees shaking yet again. The mood in the room felt ominous. I had the feeling that somepony was watching me, and I absolutely could not wiggle off my shivers.

Looking down inside the box, I saw first a note and, under said note, a smaller box (Wow….). I took a peek at the note first.

To whomever receives this letter,

If you ARE reading this letter, then it means the security protocol 9 box has been opened. Time is probably of the essence to you and I will make this quick. Inside the box here you will find a weapon. This is but a prototype of what we are currently creating to aide the sane ponies in the war. The weapon does not work for everypony. It will only operate under the special standard that balance is in the air. Good luck, ponies, and stay safe.

Princess Luna

There it was again. I remembered her name from the first time I had read from the journal. She was obviously important and locked away someplace, and she really wanted this weapon in special hands. In fact, she had it enchanted. I would bet my bits on it! Pushing open the smaller box, I revealed what appeared to be a weapon. There were three main components to it. I saw a handle, a hole in the front, and what appeared to be a very tiny lever of sorts. Silver Bear, however, had other thoughts about it.

“Oh my Celestia, Sodapop. It couldn’t be…”

“What!?” I exclaimed in question. It seemed to be a normal weapon. What in Equestria could make this one so important above all the rest of them?

“In a book I have read, it states that the royal castle was trying to create a weapon of mass destruction. This weapon was said to be able to kill a pony in an instant, and only one was ever made, as both princesses had met their demise at the Rampage on Canterlot.”

This was much different than what I had read. I had read that Princess Luna was locked away, and Princess Celestia sacrificed herself for Luna to be locked away. I was positive that mine was correct, and I didn’t want to ask any more questions. I needed to believe the journal, which had been with me from the start. Instead, I took to the giant hole in the wall. It was assumedly where the tunnels began, but definitely not where they ended. I wondered where the other tunnels actually led to, and I guessed that now, we were about to find out!

Walking slowly into the tunnel, I immediately smelled the familiar stench of blood. My nuzzle was quite used to it now, and I just shrugged it off. One of these days I was going to have to find a way to block the smell for good. I snuck in quietly, fearful of other people being around to watch.

I changed my position, moving behind Bear, both for comfort and due to the fact that he had the flashlight. The further down the tunnel we went, the more bodies we found. It felt as if hundreds of eyes were watching me. Everywhere I looked, dead pony remains looked up at me. They weren’t actually moving, but it sure felt like they were. Most of them had random objects shoved through their heads, but others had blood puddle stains beneath them. It seemed like an all-out war was at play here, and both sides were losing. I could only wonder what had caused the outbreak of complete and utter chaos.

Walking through the tunnels, we came to a fork. Two paths, left and right, were available to us. The low growling sounds we heard were probably due to the fact that we were hungry. That was when I remembered that we stopped to eat regularly. My body went pale and I tried to get Bear’s attention.

“PSSSSST! Bear, let’s scram!”

He only kicked me slightly, as if trying to tell me he knew there were zombies behind us. More like skeletons, but the idea was still the same. I chose left, as it was right next to me, and Bear followed quick suit behind me. We ran fast, but the tunnel seemed endless. The more we ran, the closer they got to us. I couldn’t run any faster than I was running, but there was light up ahead. I was so close, but so were the monsters chasing after us. Equestria wasn’t going to play nice today, and neither was I. I stopped, lifted up one hind hoof, and bucked a skeleton in the face, smashing the skull open and giving myself a quick congratulations.

I continued running, the light less than ten feet away. I could feel the bones barely slipping onto my skin with every step and as I saw Bear getting to the top of the ladder, I leapt. Again, jumping had saved my life. It was almost too easy. I jumped, landing on almost the top rung of the ladder, and I pulled myself up.

Instantly, cold over swept me. It seemed that no matter where I went, some trouble pursued me. I wasn’t going to try to escape it any longer, So instead I just huddled up next to Silver Bear. He was much warmer, and, for some odd reason, I felt really safe around him. I leaned up, giving him a kiss on the cheek. Instantly, we both became warmer and I walked with him.

Along the way through the cold Stable, we found many essential supplies. We found frozen foods, some water and, best of all, we found one another. I didn’t know who else I would meet, but me and Silver Bear were definitely a team and we were NOT going to split up...EVER! No matter what I say…

Walking out of another Stable that day, I felt stronger. I had a weapon that no other living pony knew about. I had found love with one of the most unexpected people. I had even evaded zombie ponies who were after me. Really, the only thing left from that battle was a small scratch mark on the back of my left hind hoof. It couldn’t be that bad, though.

I looked at Bear and smiled. For a moment, I asked him to stop so I could read something to him. Sitting on a nearby rock, I pulled out the journal and opened up to one of the later entries. I felt so evil for skipping through, but sometimes it would be beneficial. I scanned each page for key words and found one that may of been in better interest for everypony.

Entry #87

They did it. he Stables weren’t able to hold everypony properly. I heard about the fights from inside, but I didn’t think that they were real! Now a plague hs infected Equestria. I seem to be the only pegasus who can fly now, so I scout the area. Trouble is coming our way. The Stables are being busted open. Our only hope is that gun that I put inside the Stable for a hero to find. Somepony, either send us to Hell or save us from this goddess-forbidden place. Please...if you don’t come, we’ll turn into those….things….awww crap….who can read this from the library? By the time this gets any news spread about it, we’ll all be dead! At least I have Tank with me….wait...where did Tank go….now I’m all alone. I have my friends, but they can’t decide on what to do. They all have different strategies. Maybe someday we’ll win. For now, Equestria has no hope. We’re losing the battle, and nopony is going to save us.

R.D.

Whatever had happened here must have been pretty bad. I assumed the zombies had taken over by this time. Whatever happened to the zombies, i didn’t know. They all wound up in the Stable tunnels. The only question I could find was simple.

Who sent the raiders and the zombies into the same tunnel?

Camp

Walking was not my favorite activity. We had been walking around this seemingly endless land for days now, and we had found nothing. Our rations were basically depleted, and now I was actually used to walking. It had become the main part of my day. Bear kept telling me that soon we would reach some settlement of some sorts, but how could I believe him when it had been two days since we had left the stable? It seemed that everything around us was either ash or non-existent.

“Beeeeaaaaarrr I’m tired. I need to stop sometime!” I whined in agony.

He just turned around and looked at me, a pleading look in the windows of his soul. “Soda, I know that since the Stable, we’ve been walking almost non-stop. We can’t just stop, though. This time, truly, I have a feeling that something is right over this next hill. Please trust me.”

I had no other choice but to trust him. I sighed and followed behind him. I was fatigued, and my eyes were already drooping. Trying to walk straight had already become an issue for me. I knew ,though, that if I fell asleep in the barren grass, a raider would most likely get to me, if a zombie didn’t beat ‘em to it.

In the distance, I heard a loud clammering. It sounded as if somepony was having a dispute. My eyes shot open and I became excited. There were ponies out there!

At that moment, I didn’t care about my fatigue. All of my worries washed away and I charged, galloping at full speed to find the source of the talk. Upon climbing over the hill (and falling and rolling down it), I saw it. There was a small camp set up in the form of a town. A sign in front of it proudly proclaimed, “Welcome to Baltimare, where freedom matters.”

I smiled at the sign, a tingle of joy in my heart. Here, they were obviously not savage killers. Here, I was going to be safe. I heard Bear trot up behind me, gasping at the sight. He seemed more entushiastic about the architecture.

All around us, we saw small buildings made out of wood. It seemed old-fashioned, but then again, we were in some sort of wasteland. The buildings stood no more than one story high. Firepits were placed in front of every house, and a box in the middle (labeled “Food”) was the source of the conflict.

“Hey, those are my rations!” A stunning red stallion proclaimed.

“If they were yours, I wouldn’t be holding them in my hooves!” The green stallion on the other side shot back.

They both ran towards each other, the slab of meat dropping to the ground as they went into a full-on tussle. I couldn’t get in the way. Two full-grown stallions would pummel me if I tried. Instead, I walked over and grabbed the meat in my teeth. Both of the ponies stopped and looked up at me, a fire in their eyes.

I dropped it, finally glad to have their attention.

“Now listen to me! I have just come from a town called Ponyville! I have seen things that most of you have probably all seen as well. I understand that there is a famine in the land, but we do not need to argue over this. It is important that we all get along if we want to survive.”

Most of the ponies that had gathered around gasped when I mentioned Ponyville. Murmurs spread through the crowd.

“She could be one of them…”

“Do you think she’s a zombie?”

“It’s a miracle.”

I ignored all of this nonsense and went over to the stallions. Both of them were already apologizing to each other, and in the end, as always, decided to split the meat in two. Finally, as peace settled around, the ponies decided to surround me. Only one talked. It was an old pony, blue colored unicorn, bearing a wizard’s hat. She looked as if she had been alive for at least a century, but, knowing of the war, I knew it was impossible.

“Beautiful mare, I am the great and powerful Trixie. I know that you have traveled far to get here, and we welcome you. It has indeed been tough for us all, especially me. It is almost time for my departure, but I had to wait for you. I need to tell you something a great princess told me long ago. “One day, a mare will rise above war. She will be the savior we need, and will save the town. She will come from Ponyville. Keep hope alive in the community, and don’t turn into what everypony else has. Save yourselves, and Trixie, watch over the town I will provide.”

“And you, I believe, are the mare that Celestia told me of. I have been alive so long, that I have seen the destruction of true warfare. Please, save Equestria, and let my name live on forever.”

She fell over, her stomach still. No breath came from her, and just as instantly, she was dust, blown away by the wind. I felt a tear form in my left eye, but I refused to let it fall. I felt a tug on my shoulder, and a pony began to help me out of the crowd, pushing me towards the largest building in the town. I finally got the chance to look around the surrounding town.

Most of the buildings were gray, but beautiful murals were painted alongside each one. Every mural was different. One of them seemed to be very popular. It depicted three ponies, walking through the desert. Each color faded into one another perfectly to form a dusk setting. On one of the ponies, there was a device in her leg. One had two large weapons on it. The last pony was possibly the most beautiful mare I had ever laid my eyes upon. Her cutie mark was a bird, while the one with the weapons had none. Cacti withered around them, and in the background, you caught glimpses of zombies. Above it, the letters read, “Fallout Equestria. Come and read it at your local bookstore today.”

This was, in fact, quite interesting. It seemed that, in the midst of war, somepony wanted to write a book about it. I was excited to read it, but I had no bits to buy it with. I was only minorly sad, and a little disappointed.

~~~

Being shoved through a door was not any fun. When you add that it’s a small door, it becomes even more complicated. I had hurt the calf that one of the zombies had scratched me, getting shoved through that door. Pain split through my calf, but I tried to ignore it. I focused instead on the room I was now standing in. It smelled of fruit, which was delightful. Two ponies were conversing at the table on the far side of the room, and one of them looked odd to me.

It wasn’t the fact that she was tilted on her side, or even the fact that I could smell her breath from across the room. What got me about her was that most of her body was badly charred and burned. She turned towards me, talking in a loud, royal manner.

“Hello there, young filly! I assume you have come to work with us today!”

I stared her over, my mouth open in shock. She was still alive!!! Her body was insanely crumbling, and she was alive! For a moment, I was dazed. Then, regaining my composure, I answered in a quick-mannered voice.

“U...Ummm no ma’am! My friend and I, here, are looking for a band of raiders. We have been walking for days and are very hungry. We only wish to rest here for the night, maybe get a good meal, and then we’ll be on our way.”

She looked me up and down. When her eyes hit my scar, she stopped for a moment. She shook her head of any irrational thought and smiled up to me.

“Yes! I am the mayor of this small province you see as Baltimare. What was once a great town was lost, and had to be rebuilt. We here at Baltimare have built this town to somewhat resemble the actual town, but much, much smaller. You can stay the night here if you please. There is an extra tent right next to this office, as a matter of fact. I hope you two wouldn’t mind sharing it for just the night, would you?”

Bear and I stared at each other for a moment. Then, as if spontaneously, we both grinned at each other.

“Mrs. Mayor, it won’t be a problem at all.”

~~~

Walking out, you couldn’t even tell that anything had occurred last night. We had cleaned up every last drop of pony juices from inside of the tent, and we had washed our sweat away. I knew this was just a minor scene comparing to what could be in store for the future. Of course, him being the first I can remember, it was definitely going to be the most memorable.

Right upon leaving our sleeping quarters, we were face to face with black. Wait a minute, it wasn’t just black, but we were facing the dark side of the mayor.

“Good morning, ma’am! Need anything from us?” I asked as politely and innocently as I could.

“As a matter of fact, I think I do. There seems to be a problem on the outskirts of town. It seems we are being shut off from outside forces by a group of monsters. We can’t exactly tell what they are, but they look a bit famished.”

My eyes widened. We just got here, and we were going to be attacked by monsters!? It didn’t seem really fair, in my perspective, but I guess if anything could help right now, it would be to read. I knew the mayor wouldn’t let me read in a time that she thought was a huge crisis, so I had to make up a lame excuse to cover my tracks.

“Mayor, you can count on me! First, though, I have to go gather equipment, such as weapons and all of that. I’ll be back here in half an hour.”

Without allowing questions and all the such, I ran off, determined to find out what these monsters were and, if lucky, how we could kill them.

Entry #46

Today, it seems that the minotaurs have run wild from their normal homes. Something must be wrong with them, because even my words couldn’t seem to calm them down. I suppose it would be time to ask Twilight for help, but I know that she just gets so scared around animals. I don’t think they can hurt anypony, but they shouldn’t be mixed with our kind. It can lead to all kinds of trouble. Oh no, Twilight is coming back. I snuck into her library because I needed to write this. Every single thing that happens must go in there. Please, if I can’t, make sure the minotaurs don’t get harmed. It would break my soul.

F.S.

So, minotaurs, hmm? It says in the journal entry that we shouldn’t harm them. They obviously didn’t want to harm us, if this pony was correct. Maybe they were just as hungry as we were, and the only food source for a while was us. I wanted to respect this pony’s wishes, and do this non-violently. It seemed that, indeed, I would need a couple of weapons for my arsenal. These weren’t going to be your normal weapons, though. I needed a team. We needed to calm these “monsters” down. Then, a thought hit me smack in the face. It was clear as day and I should have noticed it before!

How long have these minotaurs been planning to kill the citizens of Baltimare? Had they seen us come in?

Life After Death

Eyes tell you everything about another pony. They can tell a whole life story if you look closely enough. A whole personality, fit into a single black sphere. Eyes were everything a pony had, is, or will been doing.

Staring into the face of a minotaur that stood just outside of the town’s circle, I realized that these ponies didn’t stand a chance. Minotaurs were big. Really big. If hunger didn’t get to Baltimare first, these monsters were definitely going to be their cause of death.

It seemed that everywhere I went, death or destruction followed. This town was no exception. The only difference was that in this town, I had a chance to save the ponies. I was still bound on saving Manehattan, but I wasn’t currently there. I was here, and now.

A snort to the face was all I could take. I was about ready to smack some sense into this guy. It didn’t seem like he could talk, but who was I to judge? I tried to ignore the little things like that. If this minotaur could talk, I don’t think he really wanted to.

Their looks, on the other hand, were a completely different story. A bull’s face, the eyes were bloodshot open. The horns that protruded from his skull hung jagged and sharp in the air, ready to pierce the nearest target. Saliva pooled from his mouth, a greenish color to it. He wore a thick metal shirt on his chest and flank.

It wasn’t very good armor, by the looks of it. Wear and tear had reached it, the metal beginning to rust and fall apart. In his large hands, though, he held the biggest weapon I had ever seen. It looked to be a battle axe, almost twice my height. Looking up at him, I felt scared. Scared of what he might do to me, or worse, the ponies of the town that stood behind me.

I turned around, walking away with a high head as he stood there, glaring at everypony that dared to look.

“Everypony, I know you’re all scared, but do not be frightened. These minotaur will not harm us. It appears they want food, of which we can provide. If not, I do believe they will ravage the town, killing every pony for food. Please, heed their warnings. For the time being, do not feed them, no matter what happens. Only in dire need shall they not starve.”

Everypony stopped to turn towards me, an angry look in their scared eyes. They were going to give in, and my say in this mattered not. I had to see the mare, and quickly. My head was swimming with pain. I knew the minotaur would stop, but yet another town would begin to die just to last another month. The more I ran, the more red my vision became. As I reached the mayor’s office, I could barely see a thing. I fell straight into her door, leaving a scuff mark on my right cheek.

The door opened with a creak. “Dear heavens, don’t you know not to be in such a position to a high official?”

I just groaned, too dizzy to stand up. Instead I tried my best to look up, explaining in a gurgle what was happening. “Food, minotaur, give in, help.”

With that I was out, yet again.

~~~

Upon waking up, I heard screaming. It didn’t seem to be screams of pain, anguish, and agony though. Somepony was screaming in joy.

“EVERYPONY, SHE’S AWAKE!! COME HERE, SHE’S AWAKE!!”

I heard scuffling, and just as suddenly felt at least a hundred pairs of eyes beaming down upon my comatose-like body.

The most I could manage was a few grunts and whistles, but as my eyes fluttered open, I was relieved to know that my vision had returned.

“Oh, Soda, we thought you were dead! Don’t try to talk, you’ve been drugged to help numb the pain. It’s alright now, though. I led the other ponies to the storm shelters, and I know we’re safe here. It was like that Stable thing we found. It has lots of food in it. I even brought your weapon!”

I lifted my head shakily. The whole room was spinning and I turned over to rest my hooves on the ground. In a hazy state, I quickly collapsed to the floor, everypony rushing to my side to lift me back into the bed.

“Oh….don’t move either. It seems like you had a serious blood clot in your hooves, and that resulted in you passing out. Luckily this young pony here was able to help.”

I then realized that I didn’t even know who had been talking. I assumed it had been Silver Bear the entire time, but there was no definite way of proving that. I looked over to where this pony was pointing, and she was pointing at Bear.

Dammit!! He saved my life AGAIN! That means I owe him another life debt...ugh….

“Tha…..Yo…,” was all I could muster from my numb lips.

The nurse that stood beside me just told me to be calm and collected, that everything would be alright. After that, she ushered everypony except Bear out. She, herself, left as well, leaving the two of us alone.

“That was very wise of you, Soda. You walked away….tried to find help….but it wouldn’t help much. You know, it’s been fun with you. I’m really sorry for all the pain I’ve put you through. I promise you it won’t ever happen again. It’s been so great to work with you, and someday, I hope to see you again. For now, I have to be on my way. Baltimare isn’t going to save itself.”

He kissed my forehead and began to leave the room, sword in hand. He must’ve picked a sword up somewhere along the way...or did he? I tried to stop him, but I couldn’t move, nor talk. It was the worst possible time for him to do this. I needed him. He was part of my life. I couldn’t lose him.

As the door slammed behind him, I screamed through closed lips. I couldn’t cry, knowing he wouldn’t be there for me. I would never again cuddle with him. I couldn’t feel safe, knowing his loving hooves couldn’t hold me. Everything was falling apart, and he wouldn’t be there for me. What would happen to this city?

I told myself this was just a joke, and that he would be back in a second. I knew he would never come back, but how could I admit it to myself? This wasn’t going to be a love story, and I had to face it. I fell asleep to the screams of ponies who thought they could win.

~~~

When I woke up, my lips were dry. Though dry, I found that I could move them, and tried to utter a few words. “Cat….Dog….Fish...Be….”

I stopped myself. That was the worst possible thing to say at this point. He was gone. He wasn’t going to come back. I stepped off the bed, grabbing the bottle of water sitting on the nightstand beside it. Taking a few drinks of it, I felt my throat open up, allowing my speech to be repaired. Upon looking around the room, I noticed something different that I hadn’t seem in any of the other towns (and there had only been one).

This room was metallic. Not like a tin can metallic, but high-tech metallic. Somepony had gone to great lengths to lighten the place up and make it futuristic. It was probably the ponies who settled here, trying to feel cozy lest an attack ever fell upon the town. I walked up to the door, jumping back when all the sides spread out into the wall, revealing a passageway. What kind of place was this? It didn’t seem like the same place I had woken up to before? The place I woke up in before was definitely covered in dirt. Lots of dirt.

Every door I walked up to slid back into the wall, still managing to startle me every single time. After twists and turns of every shape and size, I entered a room. It was doused in white, with walls that were zig-zagged. In the center of the room, “The Journal” rested on a pedestal. This was the only thing in the room, and as soon as I entered, the book floated up and over to me, landing in my hooves. There was a bookmark in one of the pages, and I automatically turned to it, intrigued by this whole place which smelled of work.

Entry #1

Wait, didn’t I already read this? Why would I be reading it again if I’m just going to get the same introduction info from it. Nevertheless, I continued reading on anyways.

It happened again. Luna had another nightmare as she wandered over the dreams of the others. Luna has rarely ever had a nightmare, as she controls them, but these are crazy. She says she sees black, occasionally a young pony will wander across a barren landscape. Around her, blood and deceit follow. I don’t think she can handle much more of this. I need to find a place she can escape to. A place that only I, and I alone, can access. Therefore, I am going to bend the rules of history and build secret tunnels, through which I can send Luna to if any problems arise. This, in full, should protect her. Please, any higher powers, protect my sister from harm and anything that is out to get her.

Princess Victoria E. Celestia

Wait, her first name is Victoria? Bwahahaha that’s hilarious! Who knew, right? Off the topic of, hehe, Vicky, could these be the tunnels? These were definitely way ahead of our time. If Celestia decided to protect her sister, she would have to have a time spell somewhere to get designs for the layout of this map. It was all a matter of wandering it.

The book itself gave no further information, and I set it down again, upon which it dissolved into the air. After the strange things I had seen in here, this wasn’t much of a surprise.

An aroma of wonder soon found it’s way to my nuzzle, a wave of water flushing into my mouth. It was that fated deer. I took great pride in eating it, and wondered if this could mean another person was here as well.

I followed the scent, through moving hallways and warped shadows. I became hungry again, and this was no different than the last time. I needed to quench my hunger.

Quickly, I came upon a door, of which the scent lingered behind it ever so nicely. I took no time in waiting for the door to open, and I barged in. On the ground, there was another fresh-roasted deer, stomach cut open and ready to be gnawed upon.

As I approached it, I heard a grunting noise.

“W-who’s there!? I can h-hear you!!” I stuttered out.

When nopony answered my calls, I let my wild side kick in and ran over to the carcass. I didn’t get very far, as when I happened upon it, it sprang up, eyes glowing green. Foam oozed from it’s mouth as it moaned out, flesh beginning to fall off of it. It walked slowly towards me as I backed up, hitting a wall.

I could’ve sworn there was a door there before, but now nothing remained here but the zombie that stood before me. Was this simply just an apparition of revenge, or something much worse? I couldn’t tell. I wished at that moment that somepony would come and save me, and in that moment, my prayers were answered.

A lasso came shooting out of the wall, followed by an orange pony with apples on her flank.

“YEEEEEHAAAAWWWW!!!” She shouted out.

It was a Western pony, come to save me! The lasso flew around the zombie’s neck and, with a swift pull, the head flew off, ricocheting back towards me. I ducked quickly, a splatter of green ooze left on the wall as I stood up, noticing that behind me, the wall was melting away. I walked up to the pony, ready to thank her.

“Thank you so much, Miss! I was sure I was going to die there...You saved me, and I’m eternally grateful for that!”

A loud bang came up from behind me, and I quickly turned around to investigate the noise. When I turned back around, she was gone. It wasn’t very plausible, but I couldn’t question anything anymore. Yet again, as I exited the room, another problem arose. I heard crying in the distance. It progressively got louder and louder the more I stood there.

My ears were bursting and I was scared. It was a baby crying endlessly, never being taken cared to. I followed the crying, eyes shut tightly. When I reached the room the sound persisted from, I walked over to the crib where the crying had been going on for what felt like an eternity. Looking down, I saw nothing. The crib was empty, and the crying still continued. It had to have needed comfort, but how do you comfort an invisible foal!? My ears were blasting and I was about ready to drop from it.

~~~

I sat up, sweat pouring down my mane. What in Equestria had just happened? What had I witnessed? I hope it was just a dream, and nothing more serious than that! I got up, for real this time, and walked out of the blanket that draped over a dirt patch to make a door. This felt so much better than the future, no doubt about it.

I walked in to only one pony: the mayor.

“Excuse me, Ms. mayor? Where is everypony?”

She looked up to me, eyes drooped and head slumped. It was obvious what had happened to them, and she didn’t feel like answering me. The look in her eyes broke my heart. My nightmares every night could never add up to the sadness and horror of a single tear. They never would.

I didn’t say another word to her. I walked out, following the steep steps up to the entrance of the storm shelter. I didn’t want food, nor did I want water. I wanted Bear, dead or alive. Pushing open that entrance, I felt new. Something had changed, and I planned to make the best of it.

~~~

Nothing was out here. There was no town, no bodies, and no minotaur. It was like they all just made up, packed everything, and left. This wasn’t even plausible, yet here I stood, believing it. I heard the screams, but where was the death. Had everypony been devoured by minotaur?

I walked around for a little bit, trying my best to locate my lost love, whom I knew would never be found?

“BEARRRRR!!!! Please Bear….I need you!!! Come back to me!!!”

Shouting never worked for me. I heard no responses, and I felt jolts going through my body. They were waves of sadness, sending shivers down my spine. I walked around this land for a couple of minutes, and finally the thought struck me.

This land is grassy. When we arrived here, I remember desert. We’re not in the same place as we were before!

Walking around, this proved to be true, as nothing was the same as when we got here. Around her, you could hear the hums of the insects and the occasional hop of a bunny through the grass.I reverted to my normal way of walking and looked down.

I mostly looked down while walking to cover up the fact that I tripped over my hooves a lot. Looking down seemed to satisfy my needs of staying upright. LOoking down, I noticed the patch of grass I was standing on was black. Everything else was green, but there seemed to be certain lines of scorched earth all around this gigantic grassy plain. There seemed to be a pattern here, but I best leave it ignored at the moment. There were slightly bigger things that I had to do, and trying to find a high place to read this from was not my top priority.

Instead, I chose to lie down for a moment in the grass and think about everything that had happened. Minotaur had surrounded the city, I passed out, woke up someplace new, had a nightmare, and woke up to find everypony missing. Was this a good thing or a bad thing? I thought it was high on my list right now to find everypony else, as quickly as possible. If not, I could at least….

“WATTTTCCCHHH OOOUUUUTTT!!!!!”

WIth no time to react, a pegasus pony rammed into me from the sky, knocking the wind out of me.

“Oh, I’m soooooo sorry! I was just flying overhead and I looked down to see you. Then I realized I was so high up and I flipped out and kind of crashed onto you. Please forgive me!”

I was speechless. What was going on here?

“Umm...yea...it’s no big deal. I’ve been through much worse around here. In fact, I was just fighting a whole gang of minotaur and…”

“Minotaur!?!? That reminds me, I need to go!! Forgive me!”

With that, he leapt up, spread his wings, and took to the skies, flying off into the distance.

Well, so much for his help. Now, if I was Bear, where would I go from here?

I would find the nearest safe haven to contact me from!!! Of course! He had to be somewhere where he knew I would look! It was genius! I galloped off, leaving the mare in the shelter, as I made my way towards the sun.

Of course I’m a demanding girl! I miss my Bear! Now who to fight next?

An Injury Is No Excuse

Everypony who has taken the oath,

The meeting will commence this Saturday at the usual time. If you fail to make it, we will assume you have worked with the traitors. An executioner will immediately be sent to you and all records of you burned.

N.L.R.

The note was dated back a thousand years ago, with no return address. Any chance of finding a pony in this shack was useless. A search of it proved to be fruitless, and nothing worth my time was in here. Whoever had written then note obviously had been part of some cult, but I couldn’t seem to figure out what the N.L.R was. The first word was obviously “New,” but other than that, I couldn’t distinguish who had written this.

Walking away from that shack, I began to hear a cry. Then, another helpful cry came from the darkness, until all around me, crying was audible. I couldn’t tell where it was coming from, nor did I want to, but among the voices I heard one familiar one: Silver Bear!

Rushing over to the nearest bush, I peeked behind it.

Nothing

I ran to every bush in the vicinity, hoping to find Bear and relieve him of his worries. No matter where I checked, the cries stayed at the same pitch, and no bush concealed the missing friend. I had hoped he would have taken shelter, but now I wasn’t so sure. What if he was just a conceived image in my mind, never becoming real! That was a terrible thought to imagine, but was it the truth? Was I bound to go crazy out here in this...wasteland?

I slumped to the ground, nuzzle in hooves. If this was all just a dream, all I had to do was close my eyes and wake up, right? For a few minutes I sat there, listening to the sounds of the crying, and of the sonic booms overhead.

Wait...SONIC BOOMS!?!?!

I looked up and beheld a spectacle. A rainbow zoomed across the sky, a sphere of color trailing closely behind. Probably the most beautiful thing I had ever seen in my life, I beheld what I called the “Pathway of Rainbows.” It seemed to point in one specific direction, seemingly towards my goal. Whoever had created this majestic wonder, I secretly thanked them, wondering if my own wings would work.

Trying to even stretch my own wings out was a task in itself, so I myself wondered how that pegasus managed to lift off the ground. Although a mystery, I decided it best to follow the path of beauty that lay before me. As I turned to walk towards the mountainous terrain that the rainbow led to, I knocked right into another pony. My head hurt and I felt a bump slowly grow, and I looked up to see none other than Silver Bear.

“Oh my Celestia Silver Bear, are you alright!? What happened to you? Did the minotaur win?! Tell me everything!!!’

He stood there, speechless, just staring at me, before his hoof lashed out and struck my across the cheek, leaving a red mark. Tears were brought to my eyes, but I forced them back and struck a hoof back out to him, intent on hitting him straight in the kiwis. He had other plans, and quickly reacted by jumping back and digging his teeth into my hoof, biting down hard, until I saw blood rise from the spot.

“Bear, why are you doing this!?”

No response.

“Dammit Bear YOU ANSWER ME!!!”

I used my other hoof to hit him square in the forehead, knocking him back a few feet. I smirked at myself, and walked over to him, fury contained now being released on my friend. In fact, my only friend….

He began to shake and quiver, a static image being replaced with another image. Every static burst would reveal another portion of the once Silver Bear. In the end, everything faded away until a black blob of a pony was left.

Holes seem to have been cut from the pony itself, and the horn protruding from his head was cracked, as if broken. His whole body was black, save for the eyes. The eyes were a deep emerald green color, which matched perfectly with the body. No cutie mark was visible on the pony, but in my eyes, this pony was enchanted.

“Hello, little fella. Are you lost?”

He just glared at me, apparently too cool to answer my questions. What if...he couldn’t talk! I couldn’t even begin to think of the life of a mute pony! Especially one in this condition….I needed to help him in case he was injured.

“Hey, there’s no need to be afraid. I forgive you for what you did. I think you were just protecting yourself and I was being really mean. Do you want to come with me? We would make great friends!”

At the word friends, his eyes opened solemnly, looking up to meet mine. The look I saw in those eyes told me yes, and I wrapped my arm around his head, beginning to walk.

All of a sudden, a loud static sound was heard from the shack I had previously left. A hundred yards off, it was barely audible, but I still heard it and, being my curious and adventurous self, decided it would be a better idea to check it out.

“Mane…...help…….Soda…….radio…”

A bunch of random words were being broadcasted over the small device. I couldn’t tell straight what it was, but it sure looked cool, and Bear was on the other side of this talk!!! My heart jumped in joy at the sound of him, and I listened for more, but the same words kept repeating over and over. I tried my best to memorize them and, for the last time, left the shack.

“Sodapop, the chosen one, do not be so hasty. Remember the wise words of Celestia.”

“AHHHHHHHHHH!!!!” I jumped about ten feet into the air, my wings finally deciding to spread out in fear. What in Equestria was THAT!? It was a phantom voice, and it didn’t seem like my friend, I decided to call him Rapid Fire (Due to his swift fighting skills), had heard it. The voice itself was soft, and very loving, like that of a mother. A slightly old tone to it, you could distinguish that it truly meant no harm.

In my head, I tried to communicate back, hoping for a quick response.

“Excuse me, but what do you mean?”

Ok, so I wasn’t very great at asking questions, but I still got a clear question through. I got no response for a couple of minutes, and I started to become doubtful. My mind told me that my walking was just impairing my ability to think clearly, but there was obviously something else at work. Maybe it was just my imagination...playing tricks on my silly old mind.

“My dear Sodapop, though lost, you must find your way back. There is a town in need of your assistance, and there you will find a great resource to your journey. Do not venture onward until you find a place to rest.”

I could also just be wrong sometimes.

It looked like my little buddy was ready to collapse into a slumber, so I slumped him over my back, carrying him as I ventured back to where I came from, hoping that it wasn’t a mistake. At this moment, I just craved another kiss, another hug, and another loving word. I didn’t care who it came from and, although a sin, I just wanted a nice night.

~~~

Hitting the gates of Manehattan wasn’t really an easy task. It seemed that the closer I got to victory, the further I got from reality. I started to think my mind was playing tricks on me at around the same time that the flowers began turning into jungles.

I was stopped at the gates, just like the time so many days ago.

“Lady, as I’ve said before, I can’t let you in. It’s against every policy I hold sacred.”

I sounded drunk. Right now, it was more about getting in and finding Slere….err…..Bear….than this damn guard. What’d he think he was? Some royal guard!?

“Now listen here, Merster…..I need to git’n to fine my frend...and save the tooooonnnnn…..”

The whole time I talked to him I was laughing uncontrollably, and the changeling had disguised himself as my daughter. Of course, I looked too young to be her mother, but then again, who cared, right?

“Lady, you sound terrible. Are you hurt? Did something happen to you on your way back?”

To us, his voice was squeaky. Whatever the heck happened to us, we sure were looney and out of our minds.

“Plees, Miss….we need to get in…..we’re just toored…..please…..”

And with that I fell forward on my hooves, face first into the gates.

~~~

Being dragged away again, this time into a small hut, was no joy ride, but it sure beat walking. Being dragged around gave me time to think, and realize that I was acting like a complete idiot, and I should probably straighten up.

I was gently rested on the ground in front of a desk, littered with technical equipment, sort of like what I had seen in my nightmare. The person behind the counters was barely recognizable by their mask that they had on, but their voice was definitely definable.

“All you ponies out there, how you doing!? It’s been quite a day, but for our final act of a day before we play the musical melodies of old, we brought in a special guest!...”

“B….Bear? Is that you…”

I say the face wink at me through the mask with a smile as he continued with his little monologue.

“It’s none other than Sodapop! Just like that cat in the books, Littlepip, Sodapop here has dedicated her life to traversing our land in search of hope and peace. She just wants everything to be cool out there and be able to colonize again! So let’s give it up for, and excuse how drunk she may sound, Sodapop!”

He grabbed me by the hoof, jumping me up and setting me in front of the microphone. This must have been where he was projecting his voice from. It wasn’t on a loop anymore, and this was live. I had to think quickly, or fear being known as the savior who can’t even utter a full sentence.

“U...ummm…..thank you. I know you all have probably heard of me, and what I’ve done. In truth, I consider myself no hero. To anypony. We are all heroes, and in our own time we will discover that. It may seem bad, but you also must realize that everything that happens, has a counter reaction to it. If you ponies can find it in your hearts to help and innocent soul today, I beseech you to do just that.

“Don’t just watch as the world crumbles around you. You may look up to me, but I look up to faith. With faith, we shall be guided. I don’t know much about this broadcasting station, but I do know one thing. United we stand, and united we will fall. Never, in any day, forget that. Please. Thank you all for listening. My name is Sodapop, and I hope to speak to you again.”

I stepped away from the microphone and looked over to Bear, who looked astonished at every work he had just heard me spoken. He quickly regained his composure and took his place back in the big seat.

“Well, you heard it here, folks! United we stand, and united we shall fall! It’s been fun hanging out with you all, and I’m CC! Stay safe, and now, here’s our little music of the night: Luna’s album.”

He pressed two buttons. One, I assumed, turned off his microphone. The other, from logical deduction, should have turned on music for everypony to hear on their “radios.” I walked with a smirk up to the masked friend.

“Hey there, Bear. What’s all this?” I took some time to study his equipment. Obviously, there was the microphone, which broadcasted all of our sound. A slot for CD’s had been placed behind the microphone, giving easy access to music. I saw a speaker which, minus the holes in the front, seemed to be in pretty good condition.

“Well, Soda, after you disappeared, I knew I had to store up some place. I knew that this town couldn’t resist letting me in, me being such a hero to them, and decided that, from here, I could contact you. Radios are everywhere, so you were bound to hear it some time or another. By the way, I really adored your speech. It was inspiring, even to myself.”

I smiled at him and gave him a peck on the cheek. A flash of light came in from behind me, which I saw in the reflection of Bear’s eyes.

“And who are you, missy?”

I looked behind me and noticed my shape shifting friend slowly coming into the room, a blush on his face.

“Bear, this is my new friend, Rapid Fire. He seems like he can’t talk, and his magic is pretty malfunctional, so I decided it was best to take him in with us. Is that ok?”

Bear himself looked worried. It was a look I had seen before, but this time, it was a totally new reason, one which I hadn’t taken into consideration before.

“Soda, I love you, I really do. Which is why you must understand that I have to stay here. If you’ve read the hip book, you’ll notice a character called Homage. She’s the DJ, and she informs the land of everything. I need to be a Homage, even if we can’t be so advanced. I know it might hurt, but if I don’t, nopony can be safe. This is the only way that I can think of where everything will work out alright.”

My heart didn’t break this time, surprisingly. I knew that he had to stay from the moment I saw him broadcasting. Now, this only confirmed my conclusion. I hugged him, motioning for Rapid Fire to join us. For a long time, we embraced as a family. We were all completely different ponies, from different worlds, and here we were embracing.

“Bear, I know. You’ve helped me so much, and now, you not only will be helping me, but every other pony in Equestria. I’m proud of you.”

We all were smiling, tears on our cheeks. It wasn’t a goodbye. I preferred it to be a…”See you later.” As I turned around, no goodbyes, I opened the door when suddenly a sharp pain hit through my neck. I stumbled over, quickly regaining my balance as the others rushed over to help me.

A couple hours later, it was confirmed that there was a rash on the back of my neck, the likes of which the doctor had never seen. It wouldn’t affect me too much. After all, an injury was no excuse to quit the quest. In games, ponies don’t just stop for one pony. You continue until one pony is left. Then, and only then, does the game end.

I woke up a couple minutes later, realizing I was hooked up to some tubes in my body. I was freaking out before I realized it was just water. Then, I looked over at the other tube and, unable to recognize it, began to freak out.

Quick as lightning, two nurses were at my side, both proclaiming that the tube simply held medicine to cure radiation. It didn’t help my anxiety very much, but I got so much calmer at hearing that it wasn’t deadly.

I sat up in bed, listening to the sounds that had, by now, become part of my daily life. Outside, ponies of all shapes and sizes moaned over hunger and thirst.No pony in Equestria seemed to have food, and I had just recently run out myself. In a couple days, I would be in hell just as much as the ponies of Manehattan were.

As soon as I had gotten my eyes to shut again, Bear had already burst in through the door, his heavy panting hinting that he had been running, and quite quickly, at that.

“Soda *Pant*... I need *pant*.....you….”

I took one look at him. He was serious about this. I knew better than to laugh at him after he had been running. He only ran when something important was happening, or when trying to catch up with another pony.

I couldn’t speak. The radiation medicine was kicking in and my mind was slightly buzzed at the effects.

“This whole town should be alive right now,” he said, his breath coming back to him.

“I just saw the sheriff and the mayor sharing a nice hay sandwich together, and not in the clean way. I have reason to believe that they’re keeping food from the citizens of Manehattan. This could be a whole government conspiracy! As soon as you’re off that plot of yours, we are headed out! I don’t think I could stand another moment of watching those two kiss, anyhow….”

My eyes shot wide open. They were storing food!? Now, it was my turn to be winter, and on those two, there is a 100% chance of blizzards. Better pack your heavy clothes, ‘cuz this is gonna be one hell of a ride.

Death Becomes Life, and Life is Nothing

So this was all a secret plot!? The mayor keeps everypony out of the town, starving her subjects? It made absolutely no sense to me. Even so, I couldn’t scratch out the possibility. It wouldn't be the first corrupt pony I've met.

Even so, I had no proof of this. I trusted Bear, but what if he just wanted me to leave? He sure did act a little suspicious. I looked back at Rapid Fire, trying his best to levitate a bottle.

"Wait, Rapid Fire! Look at it!" I rushed over to inspect the bottle, now an inch into the air. "Twilight's Super Cider." “I’ve seen this before. I keep seeing everypony in Manehattan drinking this stuff. I don’t even know what it is, but it only seems to be shipped or made here.”

"Maybe this has something to do with why nopony has started to suspect the mayor of anything. I need to find out more about this stuff.”

I turned around, facing the large building that stood in the center of Manehattan. The mayor’s office rested on the very top, or so I assumed. The hard part would be getting up there. If the mayor really was planning on killing the whole town, there was bound to be max security near her at all times.

“Why do I keep getting stuck in these positions…?”

~~~

Slowly, I creeped my way around the east corner of the building. It seemed that there was a guard inside of the door, accepting codes. All the ponies spoke in whispers, so I wasn’t really able to pick up on what the code was. It would be impossible to get inside without it, unless of course I wanted to scale the walls. That was never going to happen.

There had to be a way to get the secret code, without bringing watchful eyes to myself.

No ideas sprang up, so I had no choice but to walk off. It was obvious that I wasn’t going to fix this town. There was always something you couldn’t fix, wasn’t there? It was just annoying! I deserved to do this! It was my destiny…

Walking into the small shack of a radio station where Bear now resided, I heard him just finishing up the latest session.

“...and don’t forget, wear your protective clothing! It’s gonna be a radiation-filled evening, with zombies roaming the streets of Equestria!”

Then the idea hit me. As soon as the Silver Bear put down the microphone, I ran up behind him and hugged him. “Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!”

His face was twisted into a smile, himself looking slightly confused. “Ummm...you’re...welcome?”

My face became blank. I, then, realized he didn’t know what I was talking about. So, as I had to with everypony else, I explained it simply to him.

“Alright, so you say the government is corrupt…”

“Yes…”

“But we can’t prove that! The only way to prove this would be to get into the mayor’s top office. But would she really let us in? She’s probably just as suspicious of us as we are of her. Since there needs to be a passcode to get in, we need to know the password. And to do that, we need to hear it from another pony’s mouth. So...I might need to borrow some of your microphones.”

I slightly chuckled. I probably sounded crazy.

“What, in the name, are you talking about? That went by way too fast…”

I put a hoof to my face. This was going to take a while.

~~~

I stood behind the bush where I had spied just hours before. The bright day had suddenly become black with night. Our ears were pounded by the sounds of crickets, lying above us on the sills of the windows.

My plan was simple. I had hooked up a microphone near the door, hoping to catch the small whispers of any pony who entered. I had another in my saddlebags. This was going to be planted in the mayor’s office. I had Bear break it down, so only the recording part was there. This would make it easier to be concealed.

I was sitting there for hours on end. Bear had fallen asleep (that devil…) just ten minutes earlier. I didn’t think he would be of much use to me this time. He wasn’t very...sneaky. This was going to be a solo mission.

I had actually started to give up hope. Nopony had entered nor left the building for too long. Everypony must’ve gone to bed. When I finally started to pack up my stuff, I heard a mare yelling out through a large speaker within the tower. It could be heard across all of Manehattan, and I heard every pony grumble, exiting their homes.

“All citizens gather at once to the center of Manehattan! There is news to be told! It is gracious news, of which we will all cherish!”

Now it was my turn to be puzzle. A good thing!? What could the mayor want to bring to Manehattan?

I kept the microphone on, just in case anything were to happen while I was away. I looked over to Bear, who was still sound asleep.

“Oh, Bear…”

I left him as he was. Disturbing him never seemed to be a good idea for anypony. So I left him to his slumber, pretending to clamme, towards the center, with the rest of Manehattan. The mayor had already arrived, her presence being greeted with sneers and rude looks.

All around, ponies were yelling out.

“What do you want!?

“Can’t we sleep!?

“My muffins will burn!”

I kind of fell short of words at that last comment.

The royal power just held her hoof up high, pointing out towards the horizon, where a bright orange still held true to the sky.

“Out there, another shipment of food is to arrive! Within this shipment, a new barrage of cider will arrive!”

At that announcement, all the ponies forgot their anger, bursting out in praise.

“You’re the best!

“When will it be here!?

“Ack, my muffins!!!”

Again, what in Equestria…

I heard a stomping of hooves run off, presumptuously the pony who’s muffins would be ruined. I looked back up towards the mayor, smiling and bustling with joy.

“And, as you all know, our wonderful hero, Sodapop, has brought the raiders down. The same raiders who attacked us before! We have no worries! Food will soon arrive!”

All the ponies rejoiced yet again. Soon, their town would prosper, their lives looking up to a brighter future. I didn’t believe one second of this crap. Why in Equestria did everypony else?

The mayor stepped off the stage, excusing the town back to a peaceful night’s sleep.

This was my chance. I knew that the mayor would retreat back to her office, and she couldn’t get in without the passcode. I followed her back to the tower, hiding behind everything I could. I watched as she whispered to the guard inside, and then rushed over to the bush.

I must’ve made quite a racket, as jumping through the bush had awoken Silver Bear.

“Oh, hey Soda...what’s going on?”

Quickly, I explained to him everything that had happened over the course of the last five minutes. He didn’t seem very fazed.

“Yea, I already knew that. Some officials wanted me to broadcast it about a week ago. Hey, do you know where Rapid Fire is?”

Come to think of it, I didn’t know. I hadn’t seen him since I stole the bottle he was trying to levitate. I assumed he had just gone off. He occasionally did that. “No, I haven’t. I really hope he’s okay.”

Alright, that was a lie. Honestly, I hadn’t thought of him, not even for one second. I knew he could fend for himself, so why should I worry? I just didn’t want Bear to think I was some heartless fool.

I pulled the microphone back behind the bush, and turned on the recording equipment of Bears’.

“Citizens…”

Skip.

A male voice boomed into the speakers, now covering both of our ears.

“‘Ey there, Ms. Sparkle. You know the drill.”

We heard a slight shuffling, as if the mayor had tripped over her own hooves.

Ha.

“Sparkle Cola.”

Silver Bear jumped at the word. “Oh my!! I know that stuff! I read it in a book! That new book that I’ve been broadcasting about has it written all over its pages!”

I slightly laughed at him, my face turning a light shade of red. Of course, we couldn’t see it, but I could definitely feel a blush coming on. Sometimes, he was just a cute guy.

After placing the stuff back in Bear’s radio tent, we crossed back to the bush. Bear was the first to speak up. “Are you sure you’ll be okay in there, Soda? I really don’t want you to be hurt.”

I smiled at him, half sure myself if I was ready to do this. “Bear, I promise I’ll be back. I would never leave you.”

Was that really true? I was making promises that I couldn’t keep. I knew, truly, that someday a point would come where I would never see my beloved again.

I didn’t say another word to him. I couldn’t bring myself to look at him until this issue was resolved. I took one look back to make sure nopony saw us, and then ventured forth, up to the door.

The door itself was made of thick glass. Inside, it looked normal. Carpets lined the floors, and a desk stood in the center of the room. It looked like your typical work building, but much fancier.

“Could the mayor seriously have had time for all of this? What about her people…?”

Shakily, I brought my light-colored hoof up to the door, tapping it gently, so as not to crack the glass. He guard pony came from the side, staring at me. I could see that he was about to ask for the password, but suddenly his expression changed.

“Ms. Sodapop, we’ve been expecting you! I was told to let you in, under any circumstances! Welcome to the main communications building!”

Oh Celestia, they wanted to see me? I didn’t have to say a password? What was going on!? I knew it, they were planning to kill me!

I couldn’t deny him. I would seem suspicious. I just stepped in carefully, scanning the room for any marauders. It seemed safe enough, so I walked up to the front desk. The mare sitting there looked up at me, a look of pain in her eyes.

“W-welcome to Sparkle Towers, where we put the town before ourselves. My name is Dinky, how may I help you?”

I recognized the voice. She sounded almost exactly like the pony who had been screaming about her muffins. I just looked at her with eyes of friendship. “Hello, Dinky! My name is Sodapop and I-”

“Oh my Celestia, it’s you! You saved us! I would do anything for you! I’m also supposed to instruct you to go up to the mayor’s office at once!”

She pointed me towards a flight of wooden stairs. They looked ancient, much older than the rest of the architecture around me. I waved at her, telling her that she should visit me sometime. I told her which tent I was in, and then faced the flight of stairs in front of me. At each thirty-step interval, I saw a platform.

I gulped down a little bit of saliva, my mouth beginning to run dry. What could be so important that the mayor requested my immediate presence to her office? Did I have to do this? I could just back out now...nopony would stop me. My fame allowed me to do anything here.

Just the thought of my “fame” disgusted me. I had done absolutely nothing. Bear knew that, and the mayor knew that. Why she was spreading rumors about me, I couldn’t quite place my hoof on.

I walked, quite clumsily, up the creaking stairs. At each new landing, I looked through the windows on each door. It seemed like a normal place, free of forced labor and corruption. Ponies sat at tables, mixing ingredients to form what appeared to be the soda that everypony had been drinking.

But that was impossible! Didn’t they receive shipments? This made absolutely no sense. I couldn’t just ignore these ponies. When I hit the fifth floor, I walked in on one group of working ponies. They all stopped for about two seconds to see me, then reverted back to their science. One pony in particular was different. He sat at a table in front of the others, reading a book.

Walking up to him, the first thing I noticed was his gray mane. He looked as if he had been around forever, and knew a lot about the events that were going down here.

“H-hello...mister? What’s going on here?”

He didn’t look up. He just kept his eyes on the same sentence he had been staring at since I entered this room.

“Ummm, are you working? Am I bothering you?”

His voice was deep. Deeper than any other stallions’ voice, at least.

“Eeyup.”

Well, that was a waste of a question. I guess I asked for it, but I figured that he’d at least explain something. I put myself back to work, turning around and stepping outside the door.

“Wait!”

That was a feminine voice. One of the workers stood up. The others kept their eyes down, mixing and bottling their creations. I turned around, confused. She ran up to me, putting her hood on my shoulder. “I can help you. I work here, and they haven’t gotten to me yet. “

I assumed that she was better than nothing. “Alright, my name’s-”

“Yes, I know. You’re the savior, Sodapop.”

Does everypony have to interrupt me!? I’m not the savior of anything!!

“Well, what’s going on here?”

She looked up at me, a tear in her eyes. “Brainwashing.”

Whoa, what!? “H-how is that possible?”

“I didn’t learn until just recently. For countless hours, we sit here, mixing the same concoction over and over. I don’t know what we’re mixing, but I know what it does. When a pony drinks it, their minds, figuratively, explode! They become slaves, basically. Whatever the mayor says, goes. I never liked the stuff, so I don’t bother to drink it. That’s why they can’t get me.”

That’s what she was doing! The whole town wasn’t starving, they were just ignorant! And, of course, the mayor was the criminal. If this was true, then the soda could spread over all of Equestria. What if it was her all along!? The wars...the death...the downfall of our princess. The mayor has done it all.

“Do you know anything else?”

“I can only tell you this. The mayor isn’t who you-”

And she was gone. I looked down, the gaping hole in the ground catching my eye. "Whoa..."She fell down a trap door. That was a little bit cliche, at least I thought so. A voice came from behind me (yet again…) and this one, I actually recognized.

“Ms. Sodapop, don’t we have an appointment in my office…?”

Does A Snake Spit Acid?

The office reeked of hard cider. It seemed the mayor wasn’t too careful of how she drank. The room itself was larger than the small workplaces that the other ponies had to endure. Precious weapons lined the walls, swords and hammers alike. I didn’t see any of these “guns” like the one I had left in the care of Rapid Fire. The mayor obviously hadn’t been as technologically advanced as she made herself out to be.

I saw a couple of chairs set up in the room. One of them sat behind the desk, while one rested in front of it, on my side. The mayor traversed the small room to the seat behind the desk, taking her place as head of the town. I, in turn, made my way to the other seat, comforting myself on the silky velvet.

The large window that looked over the city frightened me. Anypony could just fall out of it if they weren’t careful enough. I kept my thoughts away from heights, focusing more on the discussion that was to be had. We were on bad terms, and the stench of rage hung over the air.

Her desk was cluttered, which was odd, due to her “clean” personality. The nametag read “Chrysanthemum.” Could Chrysanthemum seriously be her name?

“So, umm, Ms. Mayor, why am I up here? All the ponies downstairs seemed to be in a glorious uproar when they realized it was me here and not somepony else.”

Chrys just smirked at me, a look of deceit on her face. “Why, I told them all that you were going to be the one to deliver our great drinks to Manehattan.”

I just stared at her, the grim look on my face showing nothing but animosity. Already, I was planning out the many ways I could trap her and make her do what I wanted. If I pleased, I could even force her to bring this town back to glory. It could be the hotspot for all the rebels…

“Ms. Mayor, I assume you know of the meddling I have done, and of all the dirt I have on you. Is that correct?”

She only nodded her head, standing up to cross the room, standing behind me as she spoke.

“Yes, of course I know what you’ve been doing. I’ve been suspicious of you ever since you’ve entered Manehattan. You obviously won’t tell anypony else of my wrongdoings. That could end in...well, you know...a tragic death in the town. Our glorious hero, struck down by some horrendous monster, no?

“But...I am willing to propose a deal, if you would like to accept. I will revive the city of Manehattan for you. I will give them all food, and make sure that they are not left hungry. All you have to do, is find one single stallion. His name, is Shining Armor…”

My mind blanked out after she spoke his name. I knew that pony. I don’t know how I knew who he was, but memories started to flash through my mind once again.

~~~

“You know what being Captain of the Royal Guard means, correct Shining Armor?”

A royal voice came from my mouth. I couldn’t see who I was, or where I was, but the pony in front of me was addressed as Shining Armor. He was obviously of importance, being Captain of the Royal Guard and all. He spoke up, a gleam of hope in his eyes.

“Yes, your majesty. All I require is a team to lead, and a chance to see my younger sister, Twilight Sparkle, every once in a while. Those are my terms.”

My mouth formed into a smile, a kind voice coming out of it. “And fair terms they are, my subject. I am trusting you with this duty. Now go out and serve Equestria, in all your greatness!”

My hoof went to my forehead in a salute, watching as he walked off with his head held high. As soon as he left and closed the door behind him, another pony burst in. She was an alicorn, her hair a glistening dark-blue color. In the crossbreeze that fed throughout the room, her mane swirled like the stars gleamed.

“Sister, there is trouble! Discord has come once again to wreak havoc on Canterlot! We must go at once! It is unknown how he escaped from his prison...either way, we must huirry, before he destroys the castle!”

My body stood up, rushing to the door-

~~~

And suddenly I was back in reality. The mayor was still standing behind me, and it was as if time itself had stopped for me. My head was pounding now, but I continued to press on for more information, all the while slowly moving my hooves under the table to plant the microphone.

“W-why do you need him, Chrys?”

Her face contorted with anger. “My name is Ms. Mayor to you! And because, his departure of Equestria is well overdue. He leads a rebellion against everything good, and he must be stopped at once. If not, we fear that there may be no chance for a recovery.”

Of course she would say that. She was the evil one here! For a second, I considered the options. I would save a whole city, but at what cost? Could I destroy all that was left of humanity?

“Why should I destroy him? You are the evil one here, Ms. Mayor. Starving a city just so you can sur-”

“It’s called survival of the fittest, you dimwit! I told you that if you destroyed him and his army, I would save the city. Do you not understand what I’m saying? I’m giving you a chance to be a true hero!”

I looked down, a small tear forming in one of my eyes. I looked back up a her, my mouth in a crumple. “If being a hero means destroying the only hope that Equestria will get any better, then I don’t want to be a hero. Keep your damn town starving, but don’t expect to see any sympathy from me.”

I got up, making my way to do the door.

“And what about Silver Bear, eh? What would happen if he were to, I don’t know, die?”

This stopped me dead in my tracks. Would she really kill Silver Bear just because I didn’t stop the one force that could save everypony? I turned around, charging straight at her. She didn’t even move, and laughed when I stopped right in front of her.

“Stop laughing, you sack of marbles! If you lay a hoof on Bear, I’ll kill you! You will NOT hurt him!”

“Then I would hope that you will go to Canterlot Castle and destroy my threat, eh?”

I sighed, my head drooping down. I walked out, muttering harsh words under my breath. Walking out of her room that night, I felt more ashamed than I ever had before. I was about to do something that could ruin ponies forever, and all because I was a selfish bastard...why did Bear have to mean so much to me!?

I screamed out, running in one direction. Like I always had, I was running from things again. I had run when I didn’t know how to fight, I had run when I wasn’t brave enough to stand up to my fears, and I had even run when I sent Princess Luna to the moon. I wasn’t going to stop that tre-

Did I just say when I sent Princess Luna to the moon? Where did th-

When the memory started, I didn’t feel anything. All I saw was my body, falling to the earth in a bundle, as I remembered it had so many times before.

~~~

I opened the door, walking into a small library where the alicorn from before was organizing all of the books that were going to be placed into each one of the empty shelves.

“Luna, my sister, you do not have to do this! Please, I implore you to come back to the castle! We do not have to clash, as you have decided we shall. I will give you just as much responsibility as myself, just do not leave me. I could not live without you…”

The alicorn, Luna, stood up, her eyes fierce tigers that sought nothing but destruction. “Sister, I know you mean well, but there isn’t room enough for two Princesses. All of my responsibility is yours, is it not? That is what you believe, so I have given it to you. Now leave me, before I am forced to battle with you yet again.”

My being just sighed, stepping outside, placing a bubble around the treehouse-library...thing. Taking reason from that talk, I was most likely an alicorn as well. I wasn’t controlling myself, just watching the events play out, but I could still think for myself, even in the eyes of the alicorn, who now began to sing a sad song, like a lullaby. When it was over, she began talking to herself.

“Luna, why must I fight with the one I love the most? Can things not heal between us...will things be this way forever? I can only hope that you will stay peaceful.”

She walked off, through the forest I had come through when I first arrived, all the way to a castle, ancient in architecture. Inside, there seemed to be room enough for a Princess. The wide area and precious metals made home for a royal pony, much like Luna. At least...she looked royal.

The decals on the walls shined with an immeasurable pleasure. Sadly, I couldn’t move my head, which would have given me a better glimpse of the beauty this place held. I found myself in a room, a small one that seemed to be an even smaller library. In the center, there stood an altar with a single book. On the cover, all I read was “The Journal.” It was the exact same one I had!

I saw my body open it up, catching a glimpse of the brilliant white coat which I held. My own coat was a light green, and all the ponies around here were practically wearing dust. This was the first clean pony I had seen in a very long time, other than Bear, of course.

An inked quill floated up to the delicate paper, the exquisite handwriting sweeping the page like the winds blowing the leaves around.

“Royal Diary,

What else must I do to prove to Luna that she is equal to me? She has chosen the life of a villain rather than a life of coexisting with myself as a leader. I fear for her, and also fear that I may have no choice but to temporarily banish her. I fear being lonely, and will most likely fail my royal duties unless she turns herself around.

The days have not gotten better for me, either. My illnesses get stronger by the day, the sickness reminding my body that I am sure to die soon. The only one who can help me would be Discord, but we cannot let him out of his stone cell. He would kill us all.

Regards,

Princess Celestia”

A bright light flashed, my reality beginning to come back to me as this “Celestia” faded out.

~~~

My breaths quickened, my eyes opening with shock. Whatever was happening to me, I honestly did not want to figure it out. All I knew was that I was seeing things that nopony was meant to see. I had to go back to Bear.

With wobbly hooves, I tried standing up, yet again, but found myself in a blank area, much like the area I found myself in when I was moved from Baltimare. Fortunately for me, this time I saw a city not ten minutes away from my position.

The only problem was that the city was in ruins. All around, from what I saw, the city had exploded! All of the buildings were on the ground in pieces, and the metal was either melted on the ground or badly charred. Ashes floated down from the air, making me slightly choke. The city seemed abandoned, and definitely inhabitable.

No matter what it looked like, it didn’t really stop me from walking my way into it. If I was sent here after that awful mirage, then something important had to be lurking around inside.

The groans of the city merged in with my fear, creeping up like a sinister monster behind me. The howls and hisses of the decimated pipes burst around me. My eyes were half shut, me not wanting to experience the world around me. I continued forward, stumbling upon the largest building I had seen during my time in equestria. The pink glow that surrounded it reminded me of the bubble I had seen around the library in my last vision.

Trying to step inside was a burden enough to me. The bubble seemed to keep me out, pushing me back further with each small push. A hiss behind me caused me to freeze, my eyes shutting tightly.

“Come now, my dear pony. Your dessstiny awaits. We will decide on your death after you tell usss why you’re here.”

I turned around, my eyes still sealed shut. I didn’t bother opening them. I just crept forward, a scaly skin brushing against my coat. I jumped back, squealing in fear. A scaly arm wrapped around my shoulders, leading me on through the dark I saw.

When we finally stopped, I managed to pry my eyes open long enough to gag. On the floor, bodies were strewn about. Cut into, each one of the pony’s bodies was missing their crucial organs. Looking around, I noticed a lot of creatures sitting around a table, chewing on what appeared to be the livers of the dead ponies. The largest of them all slithered over to me, his fetid breath sending shivers down my spine.

“And what isss your name, my dear pony?”

I was half frozen, as earlier, but I still found a way to answer him, probably out of fear. “My n-name is Sodapop, mister. Are you going to k-kill me?”

All the beasts just laughed, the hisses forcing me to cower back. They all stopped, the slippery creature speaking again. “Now, now, Ssssodapop, we will only kill you if we sssee fit to. Why are you here today?”

“I have come in search of means to live. I believe I’m far from home, and I need to eat something.”

For some reason, I wasn’t scared anymore. I took that moment to search around, ym eyes locking on a sharp blade nearly inches from my hooves. I looked back up at the large monster, looking him straight in his eyes, slit in the centers.

“And when you stopped me, I was pretty sure I found one.”

I bucked my front hooves, hitting him in the face. I took the split second to grab the blade in my teeth, swinging it to my side, cutting the creature in the throat. A green liquid poured out. When it hit the floor, I heard a sibilation, looking down to see the floor melting underneath the goo.

The rest of the beasts quickly began to advance on me, their movements sideways and their eyes fixed on my chest.I backed up, straight into a corner. When they got close enough, I lunged, jumping onto one of their backs and bringing the knife to his throat, slitting it ferociously.

My mind was set to kill. When another one lunged out to bite me, I jumped up, onto its head,stabbing the brand deep into his skull. Looking up, I saw three more of these slippery bastards, all moving onto me. They surrounded me, their fangs jabbing for a piece of my flesh. I just reached my hoof out, grabbing the blade and plunging it deep into the mouth of one of the monsters, jumping up from my position to flip backwards and take the knife back in my nuzzle.

The green acid-like substance was all over the floor, only a thin line of metal standing between me and the two slithering creatures. I had blood covering my face, a crazy grin spreading as the knife gleamed in what sunlight was let into this hole. I slightly wondered how the blade hadn’t melted yet, but at the moment, it was best not to question it.

With one fell swing of my head, the knife flew out of my mouth and straight through the eyes of both creatures, planting itself in the wall. I brought my head down, my mane covering my eyes as I smiled with a brave look in my stance. I walked over, crossing the melted line set into the floor. I stepped over each hole, grabbing the knife in the wall.

I assumed that they wouldn’t be needing anything in this cave, so I began to search. They didn’t have much, save the blood they kept from all of their previous kills. It seems that they had never met a pony as amazing at fighting as I was.

I looked in the mirror on the far wall, my mind screaming at me. I had just killed a large band of creatures, which was supposed to be good. I might have just saved a ton of ponies from death. That didn’t excuse the fact that I was covered in blood, and my hooves hurt from stepping in that acid. I looked down, and the hair of my coat near my hooves had all been washed away, and now they were howling at me to get some ice on them.

I saw a bed on the other side of the room. Excusing the rancid smell of this place I was in, I took a seat on the bed, my eyes slipping shut. I was going to fall asleep when I heard the fearful sound of water trickling into the cave.